Just for Royalty
by Hanazawa Miya
Summary: Edward Cullen has spent 19 years of his life as the village baker boy. His mother's sudden remarriage to the King may just be the worst thing that's ever happened to him. (Canon pairings)
1. Engagement

Title: Just for Royalty

Canon pairings, fluffy romance and a little OOC. Inspired by Sofia the First (don't judge me, I'm 18 and I love the show so deal with it!) Inspired means I got the idea of this story from Sofia the First, it does NOT mean I am following the plot or story setting.

Summary:

My name is Edward Masen. First, I was the village's baker boy, living a normal life. Then I became a prince overnight. There is so much to learn in my new life and so much to adjust to in my new family. Now, I'm in love with my new sister?! What else can possibly happen to me?

* * *

"It truly is nice to meet you Edward. I hope we can get along well since we're going to be family now."

I blinked at the man standing before me, unsure of how to react. So I spoke the best line my scattered brain could think of in this situation. "Um… Sure?"

Now, I'm sure you are as confused as I am so let's go back in time, let's say a couple of hours ago.

"Hello, Edward! Do you still have any cornbread left?" Mrs Platt greeted cheerfully as she came into the bakery.

"You're just in time, we just made a new batch! Hot out of the oven!" I grinned, packing her request.

My name is Edward Masen. I am 19 years old. I live with my mother, Esme Masen. And no, my father is not in my life. He left us shortly after I was born so it's just been me and Mother. I love my mother with every fiber of my being. She is loving, kind and patient. She always thought of me first before everything else. Out of concern for me, she has never dated. She supported us both by running the village's only bakery with her partner, Rebecca Black. Since I had already finished school, I now help out every day at the bakery so Mother can have more time for herself.

Lately, Mother has been very jittery. I suspect that she has started to date someone. I do not mind, in fact, I'm waiting for her to introduce me to the man. Which leads to our current situation.

"Edward!" came a call from the kitchen.

"Yes, Aunt Rebecca?" I answered.

"Your mother just gave me a call and asked that you meet her at home. It's important," Aunt Rebecca told me, her arms and dress covered in flour.

" _Now_? But what about the shop?" I frowned.

"Silly boy, I can take care of it! Been doing it since you were a child and when you were in school! Jacob will drop by too, once his lessons are finished, which will be in 2 hours. I'll be fine!" she insisted.

Jacob is her only son, 6 years older than me. He was very much into the architecture of buildings and was furthering his studies. Recently, he was accepted as an apprentice to a well-known local architect and spends hours learning from him. We grew up as friends (sort of) since he often helped out as well.

Well, if you say so," I agreed reluctantly.

" _Yes_ , I do! Now, off you go!" Aunt Rebecca proceeded to shoo me out.

I hung my apron, washed my hands and headed home. What could possibly be so important that Mother would ask for me when the bakery is so busy? It was nearly twilight, the period where many working men finished their jobs and bought bread for their families.

"Mother?" I called as I entered our home. There was an extra pair of shoes by the door. I frowned at it. It looked shiny and expensive, dark brown in colour and silver buckles on the side. No one in the village could have possibly afforded this.

"Edward, you're home! I have someone I want you to meet," Mother smiled as she came out of the kitchen.

I looked at her suspiciously. Well. She looked nice today. She was wearing a pretty dress I had never seen before and her hair was braided loosely with a ribbon. She _never_ braided her hair; it was always in a tight bun for hygiene purposes in the bakery.

Mother took me by my arm and led me to the kitchen, where a tall handsome man stood by the dining table. He had blonde hair with kind blue eyes. And _very_ rich. He was wearing a suit _. A suit_. Who wears a suit in this village?

"Hello, Edward. It's nice to meet you. Esme has told me so much about you," he smiled, holding out his hand.

I took it hesitantly and slowly replied, "Yes, I'm sure she did. I wish I could say the same."

"Edward, you don't know who this is?" Mother asked gently.

I squinted at the man. He didn't look a least bit familiar. Was he a relative or an old friend of hers or something? "Umm, _no_? I do not think so."

Mother and the man looked at one another.

"My name is Carlisle Cullen. I asked your mother for her hand in marriage earlier and she said yes. Would you give us your blessing?" he said slowly, smiling nervously.

 _Marriage_?! My eyes nearly bulged out at his statement. I thought she was going to introduce me to the man she was _dating_ , not _marrying_!

"Of course, if you need time to think…" Carlisle added quickly and made a motion that indicated he was going to leave. But Mother took his arm and gazed at him with pleading eyes.

Ah, I know that look. It meant, _Wait. Give it time._

It seemed he knew that look too because he paused in his tracks and looked at me worriedly.

Mother seems to love him. I knew my answer.

I steeled my gaze and directed it at this man. "If you take care of mother's wellbeing, life and heart, then yes."

Mother and Carlisle seemed to be so relieved and looked at one another happily. When they did, I felt like someone who was intruding on a private moment. But shortly after, Carlisle turned back to me.

"It truly is nice to meet you Edward. I hope we can get along well since we're going to be family now."

I blinked at the man standing before me, unsure of how to react by the latter part of his dialogue. So I spoke the best line my scattered brain could think of in this situation.

"Um… Sure?"

 _Family_. Somehow, it seemed foreign to me now. That word had always consisted of just me and Mother. Now, it included Carlisle Cullen.

 _Cullen_.

Where have I heard that name from? Ah, the royal family had the same name.

Royal family.

Cullen.

Carlisle _Cullen._

 _"_ Thinking of which, our King's name was Carlisle Cullen too. What a coincidence.

 _King_.

The pieces in my head just seemed to snap together and I stared at them, my eyes now truly bulging.

" _YOU'RE THE KING_?" I burst out.

"Yes, Edward, I am. To be honest, I had expected you to recognize me immediately," Carlisle, smiled sheepishly.

"Edward doesn't read the news and pays no attention to the gossips. So I wasn't too surprised," Mother smiled.

" _Mother_! You're marrying the _King_?! Wait, is this even _allowed_? How does this work? How do you even _know_ each other in the first place?!"

All the questions in my mind were speeding out of my mouth like a train.

"Edward, calm down. Why don't we all sit down and talk properly? I'll make us some tea," Mother said soothingly, guiding me to one of the chairs at the dining table as I was trying my best to breathe, think and behave rationally. Slowly, they began to explain to me.

During one of the days where I was off in school and Mother was managing the bakery alone and Aunt Rebecca was sick, the King paid a visit to the town. This was not unusual. He often did. But this visit was different as he paid a personal visit to the bakery for the first time.

It was love at first sight for the both of them. Like, _seriously_.

King Carlisle began courting her almost immediately. Within 6 months, he decided to propose, which brings us to today.

"SIX MONTHS? You barely _know_ one another!" I gaped in disbelief.

"Maybe so. But I do know one thing. Your mother is the one for me," King Carlisle smiled gently, taking Mother's hands atop the table.

"We can always get to know one another more after marriage," Mother murmured.

I cannot deny. They love each other.

I groaned and sighed in defeat. " _Alright_. But how will this work? What will happen to our bakery? Or our home?"

Our _home_. The home that Mother single-handedly raised me for 19 years. The very place where I grew up, spent my hard times and happy times. _Our_ _bakery_. The very place that brought us income to fix the house, bring food to the table and send smiles to our faces.

King Carlisle's face softened. "Don't you worry. Your mother and I have thought long and hard about what is going to happen when we get married.

"First of all, you and Esme will move to the palace, and we shall begin a new life as a family."

The _palace_?

"Second, we will _not_ sell this house. This place has served as a home to the both of you for a long time. I shall see to it that this place is taken care of so that you can come back anytime you feel like it."

Well, that was really generous of him.

"And lastly..." the King trailed off, smiling at Mother.

"Well, I've already sorted it out with Rebecca. She is going to take over the bakery. Leah, you remember her? She's going to return to town soon and they'll run the bakery together," Mother told me, smiling.

Leah is Aunt Rebecca's step-daughter and they got along very well. Leah had ventured out of the kingdom in order to 'expand her horizons' when she had turned 19. It's been 3 years since she left and I was relieved to hear that she would return. She is a strong-willed woman. The bakery will be safe in her hands.

"Well, it seems that you two have thought of everything…" I mumbled, suddenly feeling tired.

"Edward, honey, if there's anything you'd like to say, just tell us. I know this was rather sudden and random. But I need to know how you feel about all of this," Mother said, gripping my hands.

I looked at the only woman in my life. "I am happy for you, Mother. _Truly_. For you and King Carlisle both. I am just trying to adjust myself to this foreign situation."

"Well, naturally, take as much time as you need. But first step to adjustments! Call me Carlisle. Dad is a bit far a stretch, but I can't have my new son calling me by titles!" Carlisle said lightly.

"Carlisle then," I affirmed, still feeling unsure about addressing the King so casually. Mother beamed at our exchange.

Her warm beautiful smile. I can accept anything as long as she continues to smile just like this.

A sudden thought popped into my mind.

"Wait a minute, _when is the wedding_?"

* * *

It turns out that the wedding would be a month away. That was fast. But I suppose if you're the King, anything can be prepared for you quickly.

Mother is so busy these days that I hardly see her. She has her wedding preparations, royal etiquette classes and everything else that came with becoming the new Queen.

I've been helping out at the bakery as usual. Carlisle had offered to let me stay in the palace and ' _get used to the environment_ ' he says, but I politely declined. He also offered to introduce me to my soon-to-be siblings but again I turned down the offer. I just felt that it would be better to cross the bridge when I reach it.

My soon-to-be siblings.

I had never seen the princesses and prince of our kingdom before. The King made it his duty to check on the village regularly but his children almost never accompany him on these visits. I know of them, of course.

Rosalie Cullen, the eldest, stood regally at the age of 22. The first-born princess was rumoured to be extremely beautiful and proud. There have been occasional visits from suitors from other Kingdoms for her hand in marriage but they have all been turned down.

Her twin, Jasper Cullen, well-known for his skill with the sword and battle knowledge. He was also notorious for having earned his own position in the Royal Army.

The youngest princess, Isabella Cullen, was 17 years old. She was the quietest member of the Royal Family and rumour has it that she was not very 'princess-like'. Unlike her siblings, there was not much information on the youngest royal family member.

Though it was nice of Carlisle to offer to introduce me to them, but the idea of awkwardly meeting the rest of the royal family before I was even officially part of the family was rather nerve-racking. Mother had already met them when Carlisle went and broke the news. She reassured me that I would like them. But still…

"Yo, Edward!"

My head snapped up, a grin stretching across my face as I immediately recognized the voice.

"Hey, Emmett!" I called as he literally bounced into the bakery.

"I can't _believe_ that you'll be moving into the palace in a week! We'll barely see each other anymore!" he lamented jokingly.

After the news of the King's marriage was revealed to the Royal Family, an announcement was made and the next thing I knew, the whole world was congratulating us. Our bakery has never been more popular. Carlisle had transportation issued for when Mother came home. She had been so busy with the wedding preparations that she might as well have been living in the palace now. But when she did return home, the villagers had flocked her, bringing gifts and their congratulations. Initially, even I was subjected to the same treatment. Now that three weeks have passed since the announcement, the excitement has died down a bit but Mother still receives the warm welcome back, so Carlisle had it taken care of.

"You better not forget us once you're living in the royal life!" came another joking voice by the entrance of the bakery.

"Alice!" I greeted as she made her appearance.

"Emmett, you were supposed to _wait_ for me!" she chastised the giant man.

"You were too slow, pixie!" he chortled.

I felt myself growing warm inside, watching my two best friends interacting with each other. I won't be able to see this as much when I'm living in the palace.

Emmett has been my best friend since we were children. He and his mother had visited the bakery during his fifth birthday to choose his cake. That was how we met and the rest was history.

Alice was a different case. When she was 12 years old, she came to our kingdom with her parents. They lived here for three years for work purposes and we met through Emmett. She and her family had lived near his house and they became fast friends, despite the 2 year age gap, and I naturally followed suit.

However, last year, her parents decided to move back to their homeland. Being more attached here, Alice decided to stay. Naturally, being only 15 years old at the time, her parents refused to leave her behind. After a long debate and lots of arguing, Emmett stepped in, telling them that he would offer Alice a room to stay in his house where he lived with his family. She would share it with his baby sister. After that, Alice moved into their home and her parents went back to their kingdom. They visited once a year and sent lots of letters and money for their daughter.

"It's kind of weird though. Auntie Esme is going to be our Queen in a week's time!" Alice squealed.

"Yeah, and Eddie boy here will be our Prince! Pretty unbelievable!" Emmett laughed.

I felt my smile slip off my face at the face of the new topic.

"Edward?" Alice said slowly.

I forced a smile back on. "Yeah?"

"How are you dealing with all of this? This isn't exactly normal, I need to know you're okay," she smiled gently.

I sighed. "I'm happy for them. Truly I am. It's just that, being part of the package is a bit overwhelming. I'll be moving to the palace, named a Prince and living with the Royal Family. It's a bit unbelievable. I'm still waiting for the time to wake up and realize this is all just a really weird dream."

"Ed, bro…" Emmett murmured, patting my shoulder, at a loss of words.

"Edward, we haven't been in your situation before but anytime you need us, we're all ears," Alice promised.

I managed a small smile. My best friends are the best.

* * *

"Edward, how are you?" Mother called as she entered my room.

Tonight, Mother and I were doing the last of the packing of what we wanted to bring with us. Tomorrow, we would both be whisked off to officially start living in the palace. And Mother would be married the day after tomorrow and crowned Queen while I would be crowned second Prince.

"I'm fine… Why do you ask?" I enquired, confused, as I paused mid-pack.

Mother sat down beside me and gently stroked my cheek. "There's been so many major changes in both our lives in such a short amount of time, I never managed to ask how you felt about all of this."

I sighed and leaned into her touch. "I _am_ truly happy for you. I'm just trying to adjust. It's not exactly easy to take in."

"Believe me, I understand. I'm trying to adjust too. But I feel that these changes will so good for the two of us," Mother said softly.

Mother was finally headed towards her happiness and though being Queen may be tough, she was up for the challenge. There was no way I could let her face those difficulties by herself. Being Prince cannot be that hard, right?

"I think so too," I smiled.

* * *

I take that back.

I do not think so.

My palms are sweaty, my heart is pounding and I feel the extremely strong urge to just bolt back into the house and seek refuge in my bedroom.

The entire village is decorated with streamers and banners, and confetti and flowers are just flying everywhere. Let's not miss the fact that there is a _carriage_ at my front door. _A real carriage with horses and a footman or whatever he's called!_ Said footman had also taken our baggage away earlier this morning. Now was the time for our official move to the palace. My life was becoming like a fairy tale, just like what every 19 year old boy wanted.

Mother looked absolutely stunning. She had her hair up with sparkly pins that I'm sure we couldn't have afforded before and a baby pink A-line floral patterned lace dress with long sleeves and stopped short just below her knees. She also looked _so_ happy that it made me feel just a little lonely.

Turning to me, Mother smiled. "You look so handsome, my son. Are you ready?"

 _Handsome_? I probably look like a clown. Carlisle had sent a tailor to me earlier during the week to take my measurements and I was given this casual styled suit just this morning when they were moving our things to the palace. I looked absolutely _ridiculous_ and there was so many things I wanted to object to.

First of all, I do _not_ wear warm greys. _Period_. Simply because I prefer _black_. Secondly, my hair that was reddish-brown clashed with my suit in terms of both colour and style because no matter what I did, my hair always looked like I just woke up. And last of all, I do not wear _suits_. Period. Simply because I am a _baker_. I wanted to scream that this was not me and I was so uncomfortable with _everything_ that's going on.

But one look at the most important woman in my life, I reminded myself firmly, _for Mother_ , and I gave a tight nod, hoping my facial expression didn't look as panicked as my mind was.

However, Mother seemed to sense my uneasiness and gently took my arm. "It's okay to be nervous or even agitated. This is the biggest step to the biggest change of our lives. I'm scared and nervous too. But don't worry. Everything will be alright," she whispered.

Just like that, my erratic thoughts died away and I calmed down. I was still freaking out but at least my mind is now thinking rationally and I am composed.

"Let's go. We cannot keep them waiting," I smiled and opened the door to the loud cheers of the villagers.

The footman held the carriage door open as I led Mother in and we sat down. The carriage began heading to the palace and as it got further from my home, the loneliness inside of me just seemed to grow. I spotted Emmett and Alice waving from their house as the carriage passed by and started to wave back frantically at them.

"Woo! You look weird but good luck, man!" Emmett's loud voice boomed above the crowd's cheers.

Alice was shouting something and though I could not hear her voice, her lips mouthed ' _take care_ '. Feeling as though our relationship may never be the same again, I let my hand drop to my side as they faded from view and the carriage got closer and closer to the palace.

* * *

Please review and let me know what you think!

This is my first Twilight story so I would like to know what I could improve on! I really hope you guys like it! I'll be updating every week, hopefully.


	2. Beginning Anew

Title: Just for Royalty

A/N: It's only been two days since I published this but I'm too excited right now so here is the second chapter! I hope you'll like it! If everything works out, I should have chapter 3 up during the weekend too!

Summary:

My name is Edward Masen. First, I was the village's baker boy, living a normal life. Then I became a prince overnight. There is so much to learn in my new life and so much to adjust to in my new family. Now, I'm in love with my new sister?! What else can possibly happen to me?

* * *

The carriage came to a stop and the foot man opened the door to reveal Carlisle who had a huge smile on his face, barely hiding his excitement at our arrival.

"Hello, love," King Carlisle kissed Mother's cheek as he led her off the carriage and held a hand out to me. "How are you, Edward?"

I shook his hand and gave him a tight smile. "Just fine, thank you."

"Great. I thought that since everything is moving pretty fast right now that it would be better for you to get settled in your room first. Then perhaps later in the evening, just before dinner, I'll introduce you to your siblings?" Carlisle suggested.

I felt the sudden wash of relief that I wouldn't be meeting the Royal Siblings right away. I would be so overwhelmed, not that I wasn't already at this moment.

"That would be perfect, thank you," I said gratefully.

Carlisle smiled warmly and led us into the palace. A tall man, who seemed to be in his late twenties, dressed in a formal suit approached us.

"Good afternoon, Benjamin," Mother and Carlisle greeted.

The man bowed with a warm smile. "Good afternoon, Your Majesties."

"Edward, this is Benjamin, our Castle Steward. If you have anything you need, just ask for his assistance," Carlisle said.

"Pleased to meet you, Your Highness," Benjamin bowed once more.

I winced at the foreign title. "Pleased to meet you too. Just call me Edward," I corrected.

Benjamin looked a bit startled. "But sir –"

"Now, now, Benjamin. Edward is still getting used to things here. If he feels more comfortable to be addressed by his name, it's perfectly fine," Carlisle interjected.

"Alright, then. Prince Edward, I'll show you to your room from here," Benjamin said.

Well, there was still a title tacked on there but if this was all I was going to get, I'll settle for it _. 'Though I'm not the Prince yet'_ my mind protested weakly.

Mother smiled at me encouragingly as I glanced at her. "I'll see you at dinner later, Edward. Take your time to unpack and get adjusted, sweetheart."

"I hope you'll like your room Edward. Your mother and I prepared it with you in mind. If anything is not to your liking, feel free to let us know and we'll change it," Carlisle said reassuringly.

"Well, I guess I'll see you later," I mumbled, feeling a bit pathetic for being so nervous, as I followed Benjamin.

I walked behind him as the awkwardness seemed to climb mile high. I struggled to find a topic to bring up but I didn't even know if he would want to have a conversation with me. Thankfully, Benjamin started to speak first.

"Everyone has been very excited to meet the new Queen and Prince, we're so happy the day has come at last," he said.

"Oh," I mumbled. Great. The topic that I have nothing pleasant to say about.

"After dinner, I will give you a proper tour of the palace so you can find you way around," he continued.

I smiled sheepishly at that. "I don't think I'll ever be able to find my way around this huge place."

"Well, everyone says that at first. But you can always ask the servants or guards for directions and they'll only be too happy to assist you," Benjamin said.

"Oh, okay," I murmured, glancing around me, feeling a bit self-conscious.

Now that he mentioned it, it seemed that there were guards everywhere. Well, it is the home of the ruler of the country but two guards every few steps is a bit overdoing it. The paintings on the wall seem to stare at us as we walked by. Now I felt like we were moving from the fairy tale life to being in one of those horror houses where people spy on you through paintings. We came to a fork in the long corridor and to the left was yet another long corridor to who-knows-where while the right was a giant midnight blue double bedroom doors with vintage brass knobs manned by two guards who looked even bigger than Emmett.

"Prince Edward, these are your personal guards, Garrett and Diego," Benjamin waved his hand respectively at them and they bowed. I simply could not tell which was which as their faces were covered by the armor they were wearing.

"Pleased to meet you," I said awkwardly.

They didn't say a word but opened the giant doors instead. Within the giant doors was a small room with an oversized round sofa chair, display cases on both the left and right walls and another big double door, only it was wooden with black iron handles.

"This is your sitting room. Sometimes before big events, members of the Royal Family are required to prepare early and while waiting for the actual event to begin they may wait in these rooms until summoned. It also functions as a waiting room of a sort for your guests who come for a visit but they will wait here until you give them permission to enter you room," Benjamin explained.

"Oh wow, I see," I said unintelligently.

"These doors lead to your bedroom. Every bedroom door to a member of the Royal Family has a special lock which only the Royal Crests and servants' identification can unlock."

"Royal Crest?" Great, a fancy door with a complicated lock system. Oh, why is Royal Life so confusing?

Thankfully, Benjamin didn't look impatient at all and began to explain further.

"The Royal Family has the Official Royal Crest that symbolizes our Kingdom and this crest is the one belonging to our flag. However, within the Family itself, there are separate crest designs made _specifically_ for each individual member of the Royal Family. The crests are sign of identification and evidence that you truly belong to the Royal Family; it is engraved on a piece of jewellery that you are to _never_ take off. Yours and the Queen's will be bestowed upon you tomorrow at your Crowning Ceremony. Usually, it is given when the member turns of age at their Coming-of-Age Ceremony but this is an exceptional case, of course.

These doors will only open when the Royal Crests are of close proximity; there is _no need_ to take it off or present it in order to open the door, it is automatic. However, for now since it has yet to be given to you, I will open the door with my own key."

Benjamin then reached for the door handle and twisted it open, revealing a large room that I was too afraid to enter but gingerly stepped forward anyway. The walls were pale blue, almost white, in colour and gold patterns on some of the wall panels. It was even bigger than my living room and dining room back home combined!

Directly across the entrance of the room were doors that opened to a Victorian balcony. Already there were flowers decorating the railings. _Must be Mother's idea_ , I thought, smiling. Stacks of boxes full of my things from my old life and old home were put neatly just beside the balcony doors.

A pastel white French provincial four poster bed sat against the wall on my right with short gold valance curtains hanging from the rods. My sheets and duvets were the same pale blue colour and my thick pillows were gold. Well, it seemed that the theme is pale blue and gold.

Slightly further from my bed was a bay window seat with storage underneath, a bookcase just next to it and a gold rug between the bed and the window seat.

On the other side of the bed, much further away was two sets of double doors that were much smaller compared to the one at the entrance of my room. _Just how many doors do I need?!_ Benjamin seemed to notice my incredulous stare and provided an explanation of his own, "The ones nearer to your bed lead to your walk-in closet and the one on the opposite wall near it leads to your private bathroom."

 _Ah, that explains it._ I turned my gaze to the left side of the room. There was an adult-sized study table with all the compartments, drawers and shelves as well as another round glass table set for four just nearer to the middle of the room. _What was a table set for in a bedroom?_

Again, Benjamin seemed to read my thoughts and helpfully answered, "For visitors or if you were to invite other members of the Family to your room."

I gazed around the room once more. This was mine. This huge room filled with expensive-looking furniture and empty spaces… was mine.

"Well, Prince Edward, if you have no need of me, I shall dismiss myself and head for my duties. I will leave you to unpack and get settled. If there is anything you want to change in this room or add, just let me know and it will be done," Benjamin said.

"Alright. Thank you, Benjamin," I said quietly and the Castle Steward left. In this huge bedroom that seemed to belong to a rich stranger made me feel more alone than ever.

' _Snap out of it, Edward! Mother will be adjusting too and what is the use of a man for if he cannot be strong and adapt to the new environment? Mother prepared this room specially for you!'_ I thought to myself firmly and started for the boxes. ' _Just one at a time.'_

I took my time filling the bookshelves with my collections of classics, fictions and non-fictions. To my surprise, the walk-in closet was already filled with clothes, shoes and accessories fit for a prince. There was still much space so I simply fit in my own old clothes. There was a small area sanctioned off with a curtain and a mirror behind it, so I assumed it was a changing room _. A changing room in a walk-in closet_.

The bathroom, too, was big, almost as large as the kitchen in my old home. All equipped with separate shower and bathtub areas, countertop bathroom sink vanity, and even a cabinet for robes and towels. There was already soap, shampoo, toothbrushes and other bathroom essentials but I added my own anyway.

A few hours later, I finally finished unpacking everything and there was still ample space on my bookcase and study table compartments. I lifted my final item from the last box and set it on the bed.

"Well, Elizabeth, it's looking like home, I suppose. But we'll adjust, won't we?" I smiled.

Elizabeth is my doll from childhood. When Mother was expecting me, she had dreams at night that were occupied with a little girl. My grandmother started knitting baby girls' clothes and socks as well as making a new doll. Of course, surprise, surprise, I turned out to be a boy. However, Grandmother still gave the doll to me during my fifth birthday when she was ill. I have treasured her ever since. I didn't have many memories of Grandmother and she didn't like to take pictures so not many of those either. Elizabeth was my only memento of her.

A few knocks sounded at the door, interrupting my peaceful moment with Elizabeth. I turned around to see Benjamin, who gave a bow.

"Prince Edward, it is now half past 5 and dinner begins in an hour. The King has requested your presence in the royal throne room where you will be acquainted with the Prince and Princesses," he announced.

 _Ah, I completely forgot about that._

"Err, right. Okay, let's go," I said, trying to sound enthusiastic.

Benjamin led the way out and gave me a smile. "You look nervous, Prince Edward, if you do not mind me saying so."

"Well, yeah. I _am_ going to be meeting the Royal Family," I said, trying not to picture anything too extreme.

"You have nothing to worry about, young Prince. I am sure you will get along well," he assured me.

"I hope so," I mumbled.

We soon came into a giant… room? I had no words to describe it. I was so nervous that I had not paid any attention to my surroundings and suddenly I'm already here. Mother and Carlisle stood in the center of the room, looking absolutely regal.

Mother had changed into a beautiful long red elegant evening gown and Carlisle had royal robes over his clothes. A tall blond woman with loose ringlets half up stood beside Carlisle in a tangerine evening dress that hugged her curves, flowing down and stopping below her knees. Another blonde, a man, stood close to her in a white blouse with a dark brown vest and black tailored pants. The last person in the room aside from the guards was another woman who stood just next to Mother. She had wavy dark brown hair and wore a simple A-line black dress that reached her knees with long sleeves and white lace details on the hem and sleeve cuffs. I suddenly felt so underdressed and out of place for not having changed.

"I present... Prince Edward!" Benjamin announced stopping just a distance away from them.

I looked at him, startled by his sudden actions.

"Edward, we're so glad you could join us. Come here and meet your new siblings," Mother called with a smile.

I looked forward and forced my feet to move towards them. My face seemed to have cramped up as I could not manage even a small smile and I knew my movement must have been extremely stiff.

Before it could get awkward, I made the snap decision to get it done and over with. "Hello, it's nice to meet you, I'm Edward Masen," I said quickly and bowed.

"Oh, don't bow, Edward! I told you, we're family now," Carlisle said warmly.

"Yes, it seems we will soon be brothers. It will be nice to have a male sibling. My name is Jasper, pleased to meet you," the blonde man said with a nod and a small smile.

"I am his twin, Rosalie. Pleasure," the blonde woman said curtly. Up close, I could now see that the twins resembled each other and took after Carlisle. The both had blue eyes though Carlisle's looked softer and theirs' more piercing and sharp.

"I'm Bella. Welcome to the family," the brunette said quietly with a smile.

And… it gets awkward again.

 _Thankfully_ for Benjamin, he appeared at the entrance of the throne room and announced that dinner would be served in ten minutes so we best be getting seated in the dining room.

* * *

I looked at the rows of forks and spoons on either sides of my plate and felt the urge of frustration at the hilarity of it all. My life truly _was_ becoming a fairy tale and this was supposed to be the most cliché part where I humiliate myself by using the wrong utensils for the wrong dishes.

 _'Well, it doesn't matter! No one will be watching what you're using anyways! Besides, they know you're new at this, so just pick a regular looking spoon and eat!'_ I scolded myself and tried to look nonchalant as I picked up a normal-looking spoon and brought some soup to my lips. The rich flavours seemed to awaken my taste buds and appetite and I let the warmth of it spread through me.

As we finished our dessert, Carlisle took the opportunity to start a conversation.

"Well, we now have two new members in our family but we all still have much to know about each other. Why don't we introduce ourselves once more and share some interesting things?"

Mother smiled, "That sounds lovely. I'll go first then." She addressed my siblings with a smile. "As you already know, you can call me Esme. I love working with my hands, be it baking, sewing or gardening. Even though my addition to this family is rather sudden, I _do_ hope we can all get to know more about another and spend time together as a family in the future."

Bella and Jasper gave her smiles and nodded though Rosalie looked indifferent.

"I'd like that too, love," Carlisle agreed and looked me in the eye. "Edward, I really _truly_ welcome you into our family. It may be a difficult transition, from one life to another in _such_ a short amount of time, but I do view you as my son now. If there is _anything_ you need to talk about or need, feel free to approach me."

"Um, thank you," I mumbled, trying not to fidget at his intense gaze.

" _Good_! Jasper, you go next!"

Jasper grinned at me, "I'm 22 this year, which makes you the _baby_ brother. I'm a strategist in the Royal Military and I hope we can get along as brothers."

I felt a strange sense of camaraderie at his words. I always did want an older brother, one to admire and look up to for advice, since I didn't have a father figure either. Though Emmett may have been like a brother to me, he was always really childish.

"Me too," I replied with a smile.

"Like Jasper, I'm 22, of course. I design gowns and dresses in my free time," my blonde sister said briefly.

"A fashion expert, I see! That sounds very wonderful," Mother exclaimed. Rosalie gave her small smile but it disappeared quickly.

Bella glanced at me but focused her gaze on Mother as she spoke. "I'm 17 this year. I like literature and art, as well as cooking, gardening and making plush toys."

Mother could not look anymore delighted. "It seems that we have a lot in common. Perhaps we can do some of those together one of these days."

Bella nodded and Carlisle beamed in approval at their exchange.

"I'm glad we all had this conversation. Now it's off to bed for everyone and rest well. Tomorrow is a big day!" he exclaimed.

 _Ah. I forgot._

Tomorrow was the wedding and Crowning Ceremony. _Crap_.

* * *

 **SNEAK PEAK** :

 _"Mother, I do not think I can do this," I confessed._

 _"Do what, darling?" she asked, taking my hands into hers, just like the many times she did when I was a boy._

 _"This. Be a Prince. Live in the castle. Wear fancy clothes and everything. I just… I don't think this is… well, me."_

* * *

I hope this chapter isn't too boring, I just wanted to show the meeting between Edward and his new siblings. Rosalie's a little cold towards Esme but she doesn't hate her so rest assured, there is no Rosalie-hate in this story, it's just that these are big changes and some people just need more time especially when it involves strangers joining a family.

Jasper is adjusting better than Rosalie simply because he always wanted a younger brother. Had Edward been a girl, he would have taken a longer time to accept the change too. Bella is the youngest and she is currently showing no signs of accepting or rejecting the new members of the family but she does have her own concerns which I will reveal in future chapters to come.

Please review and let me know if you like it!


	3. Conflicting Emotions

Title: Just for Royalty

 **DISCLAIMER** : Majority of characters belong to the author of Twilight Saga, the amazing Stephanie Meyer. If I owned it, I wouldn't be writing this.

A/N: Edward is a little out of character in this chapter but when huge changes are made, especially ones that involve changing your entire lives and affecting your family, you might want to revert into a little kid seeking help from your mother too. 19 years old may seem like a mature age but it's not mature enough to be able handle all these major changes altering everything he has known.

Please review!

* * *

The duvet was soft beyond belief, the pillows fluffy and squishy, and before today, I would have fallen asleep in bliss.

However, tonight, this large bed made me miss home. The pillows made me long for warmth and the duvet made me feel even more alone and lost in this room as it engulfed my very being.

After mush tossing and turning, I sat up and glanced around me and my gaze fell upon Elizabeth who was on her own bed of cushions on the floor.

"Lonely, isn't it, girl?" Silence answered my question and there were no words to describe just how alone I felt at that moment in the large room too big for one person. As I thought about how tomorrow would be like, a sense of panic seemed to overwhelm me and I jumped out of bed and started pacing.

There were so many possibilities of something going wrong tomorrow. I could make a fool out of myself during the Crowning Ceremony and everyone in the Kingdom would witness it. What if I cry at the wedding, when Mother says her vows? The whole Kingdom would label me as The Weepy Prince!

' _Get a grip, Edward! You're 19 years old! Don't act like a kid!_ ' I tried to tell myself firmly but in this situation, I truly was not sure how to feel or think. Unable to stand being in this room any longer and missing the comforts of home and having Mother close to me, I left my bedroom.

Garrett and Diego didn't say a word about my leaving nor did they follow me but I gave little notice to them and simply walked aimlessly, going wherever my feet took me.

I didn't track how long I had been walking or which directions I had gone into. Even if I had been walking in a circle, I wouldn't have known for my mind was in a whirl and my thoughts were _everywhere_!

"Edward?" I gave a start and realized I had stopped walking and was now standing in a lone corridor, where an open door was just a few feet away. Mother was standing at the entrance, looking at me in concern.

"What's wrong, sweetheart?" Her kind voice made me feel even worse as I went into her arms and buried my face in her warmth of her hair.

"Mother, I do not think I can do this," I confessed.

Mother led my inside the sitting room of the bedroom she was temporarily staying in and I sank onto the round sofa chair miserably. Since they were not yet married, traditions of the Kingdom did not allow them to share a room yet so Mother was given a guest room temporarily and she will move into the King's chamber after the wedding.

"Do what, darling?" she asked, taking my hands into hers, just like the many times she did when I was a boy.

" _This_. Be a Prince. Live in the castle. Wear fancy clothes and everything. I just… I don't think this is… well, _me_ ," I said slowly.

Mother gently stroked my hair. "Oh Edward, you don't have to be anyone but yourself. Being a Prince _will not_ and _should not_ change who you are."

"I know but…"

"I know you have doubts. I do too. But Edward, this is something I chose. You don't have to be here if you have another life you wish to pursue. If you truly want to, you can go back to living in our home in the village and continue your life. You will still be allowed to visit me here and I'll visit you too. My decision to get married and be Queen shouldn't force you to conform to a new life if you don't want it. You are an adult now, I will allow you to make your own choices."

My head snapped up and I looked at her with wide eyes.

Mother chuckled at my expression. "Edward, my son. You have always been so responsible and taken such good care of me. I trust you if you wish to live by yourself. I do not want you to be unhappy by forcing yourself to take up a role that I chose for myself. You have your own choices too."

I bit my lip and stared at my knees. King Mother, loving Mother. I wanted to stay here and continue to watch over her happiness. The temptation of going back to the village, living in my old home and continuing my old life was so very strong. But…

"Mother, would it be okay… if I were to _try_?" I asked hesitatingly.

"Try, son?"

" _Try_ to be… a Prince and live the life… you chose for us?"

I had made my choice. Even if I was given the option of going back, there was no way I was going to leave behind the woman who raised me, kissed my wounds and stayed awake all night during the times I had fallen ill.

Mother's face softened. "Of course. You don't have to be perfect. Just remember to be _you_. And I love you just the way you are," she whispered, hugging me close.

"Thank you, Mother. I'm sorry for being like this, even though I'm supposed to be a man," I said quietly.

" _Nonsense_! Everyone, even men and adults, needs someone to listen if they have problems. I am your _mother_. And I'm glad you told me how you felt, it means so much to me so never be afraid to be my little boy, Edward," she said warmly.

"It is alright to be a little boy once in a while, Edward."

Mother and I turned to the source of the voice standing by the entrance. Carlisle smiled sheepishly at us, "Sorry, I overheard the entire thing. But I do admire you for taking all these in stride and adjusting so well."

Carlisle knelt before me and took my hands. I felt something hard and cold being pushed between my palms and I looked at our joint hands curiously.

"I was planning to give you this privately after the Crowning Ceremony but perhaps now is not a bad time." He turned out my palms and a bronze antique pocket watch with a beautiful intricate Victorian design. "This belonged to my father, the late King's favourite pocket watch that he passed down to me just before he passed. And now, I'm passing this to you."

My eyes widened and I immediately tried to push it back into his palms. "No, no, I can't take this!"

Carlisle shook his head and smiled at me, firmly closing my fist around the watch. "I want _you_ to have it. I trust that you'll take good care of it for me."

"Yes, sir," I breathed.

"Now, off to bed with you. We have a big day tomorrow and you need your rest. I'll walk you to your room," Carlisle offered.

Mother kissed my forehead, "Goodnight, sweetheart."

"Goodnight, Mother," I murmured, allowing Carlisle to lead me out.

As we walked in silence, I plucked the courage to say something that had been in my mind for a while.

"Umm, Carlisle?"

"Hmm?"

"Well, I just wanted to thank you, for being so understanding and all…" _That was the most heartfelt thank you I could give. How manly of me._

"Umm, I mean I'm just really grateful that you're being so kind and…" I rambled but Carlisle stopped and turned around, looking me in the eye, and I realized we had already reach my room and Garrett and Diego had stiff positions in salute to the King.

"Edward. We are family now. You don't have to thank me, I just want you to be able to open up to us and get adjusted as quickly as possible so I can start calling you my son. Jasper has always wanted another brother and I'm glad you are here to fill that role for him. Just remember that now, you have a big family here for you, so you're not alone anymore," he said sincerely.

There was no way I could doubt his words. He meant every bit of it.

"Thank you," I said quietly and went into my room. Crawling into bed, I grabbed Elizabeth and held her close, trying to absorb the entire day and letting go of consciousness.

* * *

How was it possible for me to be _this_ nervous?

Benjamin had woken me up at nearly 5.30am and sent breakfast to me in bed. While I was stuffing my face sleepily, a male servant who introduced himself as _'Just Ben, my personal servant'_ began to rattle off the day's schedule and I blinked blearily at him, feeling like an idiot as I could not concentrate on his words.

According to what I could understand, Mother and Carlisle were already up, preparing for the wedding, and I was to start getting prepared too. He was going to send the servants in to help me get dressed, fix my hair, make up and other essentials. Before that could get registered in my brain, he continued to mention that after the vows were said, the Crowning Ceremony would take place immediately at the same place so I would need to be ready. Apparently, all I needed to do was stand beside my Mother and say "I swear" to whatever it is they told me to swear to.

After I was done with breakfast, the trays were whisked away and I was pushed into the bathroom where I yelled and protested when Ben called the male servants in and they forcibly got me undressed, dumped me into the bathtub filled with warm water and bubbles, and began attacking my hair with shampoo. While I was half-drowning in their pampering, Ben was listing away what I would be wearing from my hair style to my make-up to my shoes.

Before I knew it, I was toweled dry (again while protesting, feeling almost humiliated) and was pushed into a chair in front of the full length mirror in my dressing room. Ben called in female servants who began to pat _all_ sorts of things onto my face that I suspected was _foundation_ and _powder_ , and I coughed and tried to swat their hands away.

Suddenly I felt a yank in my hair and realized someone was attempting to tame it and fingers were combing through and stuff were sprayed in _. I couldn't decide to fight back against the face-attackers or the hair-puller so I screwed my eyes shut and hoped they would stop soon._ Finally I felt everything go still, and I slowly opened my eyes cautiously to find that I was alone in the dressing room with Ben who was looking at me, amused. "Here you go, sir. Change into these and we'll help you with your jacket and tie later," he said and passed me a black formal shirt and matching dress pants.

"Oh, and please do tuck in," he reminded before leaving me to change in privacy. As I changed, I took a good look at myself in the mirror and felt like cringing at my own reflection. My hair was styled in a modern pompadour that was popular with a lot of the richer men in the village, my face was smooth and flawless (I could barely see any spots or redness around my nose that were usually present) and my eyebrows had been altered too.

 _This was not me._

I didn't know whether to like it or to hate it. As I stepped back out into my walk-in closet area, the servant girls clapped and Ben looked satisfied. "You're all ready now," he smiled. He slung a dark grey tie, almost black, around my neck and began to fix it for me as the two servant girls slipped my arms into a white tuxedo jacket and I frowned. "Isn't this a little… _non-traditional_?"

Ben patted my shoulder and made me face the mirror once he was done. "Usually, a Royal wedding ceremony would require male _attendees_ to be in _black_ tuxedos and Crowning Ceremonies required the Royal-to-be to dress in a _white_ tuxedo. Since you'll be going though both at once, you're dressed in black and white," he explained.

Now that I looked so formal, I truly could not recognize myself. With the hair at the sides trimmed and styled, and dressed like I had all the money in the world, it felt like there was no longer a _trace_ of the old Edward. Shaking my head internally, I forced the jumbled thoughts away. "What about my mother?"

"She _is_ the bride so she's originally in white and the Crowning Ceremony requires her to be in white so there's no changes there. She looks absolutely beautiful and you two will make quite the pair next to each other later at the ceremony!" Ben assured.

"Is everything going- Oh, Prince Edward, you look marvelous!" Benjamin exclaimed, walking in.

"We were just done, Mr Benjamin," Ben told him.

"Great! So far, everything is going smoothly. Prince Edward, there's only half an hour before the guests start arriving so please wait in your sitting room until the guards escort you down," Benjamin said, as the servants all left.

With my head reeling with everything that's going on, I simply nodded weakly and headed to the sitting room where I sank onto the chair while trying not to wrinkle anything and keeping a straight posture.

* * *

"Do you, Esme Anne Masen, take His Majesty's, King Carlisle to be your lawfully wedded husband, in sickness and health?"

"I do."

"Do you, King Carlisle Cullen, take Esme Anne Masen to be your lawfully wedded wife, in sickness and health?"

"I do."

"I pronounce you, Husband and Wife. You may kiss the bride."

I gazed on wistfully as Carlisle reached out and lifted Mother's veil to kiss her gently on the lips. She looked so beautiful today. Mother wore a simple white long sleeved, off-shoulder Victorian wedding dress with amazing floral lace details and trumpet silhouette. The smile on her face the most dazzling I had seen in my entire life.

As they parted, Carlisle took her hand and they both turned to me, blissful smiles on their faces.

 _I guess that's my cue._

Earlier, when I was waiting in the sitting room, a man who introduced himself as 'Eleazar the Royal Events Planner' had given me the whole rundown on what I should do once the vows were said. Apparently, all I had to do was step up next to them once they gave me 'the sign'.

 _"What kind of sign?"_

 _"Don't worry, you'll know your moment once it arrives," Eleazar chuckled. He checked his watched and jumped, "Just nice! It's time for us to head down! Let us go, Prince Edward!"_

I slowly walked up to them and bowed. "I, Edward Masen, present myself to the King," I said clearly, hoping the nervousness didn't show in my voice.

Carlisle's smile grew wider and he held out his hand. "The King recognizes Edward Masen as his second son."

I took his hand and he pulled me gently in between him and Mother as an old man that I was told earlier was the Elder in the Royal Council stepped forward.

"Do you, Edward Masen, hereby accept your duties and responsibilities as Second Prince of this Kingdom, vow to uphold the laws and care for the people?"

I startled a bit and swallowed. "I do."

"Do you, Esme Cullen, hereby accept your duties and responsibilities as Queen of this Kingdom, vow to uphold the laws and rule by King Carlisle's side with a just and kind heart?"

"I do." I glanced sideways at the woman who now looked so strong and radiant.

The Elder turned to face the audience as crowns were placed on our heads.

"I declare Queen Esme Cullen and Prince Edward Masen!"

I smiled faintly as the people cheered and confetti was thrown about us.

 _Did I really make the right choice?_

* * *

 **SNEAK PEAK**

 _"I missed my friends. Would it be possible... to see them? Just for a while?" I asked hesitatingly._

 _Mother looked at me in surprise. "Of course, Edward! I'd never think to stop you from meeting them. In fact, you can invite them over and let them see your life here. I'm sure they're worried and concerned about how you're living."_

 _I felt my chest warm as I smiled. "Thank you, Mother. I'll do just that."_

 _"Oh, but do inform Carlisle and Benjamin of their arrival."_

 _"I'll be sure to do that!"_

 _A wide grin stretched across my face as I hurried back to my quarters. I couldn't wait to see Emmett and Alice again!_

* * *

A/N: I hope that wasn't too confusing a chapter. I have no idea what wedding vows are supposed to be as I never paid attention to them and I just made up the Crowning Ceremony vows but I hope they were okay.

 **Clarification** : Here in my country, the moment your parent marries another, they are automatically your parent too. However, your name has already been registered with your previous parents names on the birth certificate so you would need to get that legally changed if you wanted to. So in this case, the moment Carlisle married Esme, Edward is already his son in the eyes of the law. But if Edward wanted to have Carlisle's surname, he would need to get it legally changed, you know, with all the applications and papers and all that. I'm not sure if this system applies to which countries but in case your country doesn't, I'm just clarifying any confusion that could have been caused.

Let me know what you think of this chapter!


	4. Pheonix

Title: Just for Royalty

 **DISCLAIMER** : Majority of characters belong to the author of Twilight Saga, the amazing Stephanie Meyer. If I owned it, I wouldn't be writing this.

Please review!

* * *

My hands were sweaty, my heart racing and my mind in a daze as I stared at the beautiful brunette in pale blue halter neck dress than flowed gracefully to her ankles. Her fingers picked nervously at the sequins that formed a belt around her waist and she looked very uncomfortable.

 _How did I get myself into this?_

Let's go back to an hour ago when the party was just starting. _Traditionally_ , the bride and groom were to dance and family members would follow shortly after the song changes. However, Eleazar pulled me aside to inform me that this was a _Royal_ wedding, therefore there are other customs. After the King and Queen share the first dance, the first Prince and the first Princess would join them on the floor followed by the second Prince and second Princess. That would mean _I would need to ask Princess Bella to dance with me_.

As I watched King Carlisle twirl Mother around the ballroom effortlessly and the guests gazed in wonder at them, I was having a freak out session at the sidelines, _dreading_ the moment the song changes. I kept glancing at my soon-to-be dance partner who was on the right side of the ballroom and couldn't help the horrifying images of making a fool out of myself from coming to mind.

Second Princess Bella looked truly _different_ tonight. Usually, Rosalie seemed to outshine her but tonight as they stood side-by-side, Bella was just as striking. She had her hair up in a Dutch braid crown with flowers and jeweled pins and long blue dress that made her look tall and elegant. Rosalie had outdone herself too, wavy blonde hair down her waist held back by two jeweled combs on both sides of her head and a similar dress to Bella's, except that hers was strapless and had sweetheart neckline decorated with small crystals.

Jasper stood beside me with a gentle smile on his face as he gazed upon our parents. He donned the traditional black tuxedo, looking very handsome with his tousled blonde hair and I felt awkward by his side.

"I'm _really_ happy for them," he murmured unexpectedly. We looked at one another and grinned at the overly formal atmosphere between us.

"You know, Dad had always been a _wonderful_ father, raising us all by himself after Mother died. He never once complained about any hardships he faced, despite having to juggle his duties as King while ensuring we were well cared for. But after meeting Esme, he seems so much happier. I'm _so_ glad he found her," Jasper told me quietly.

I looked towards the new happy couple. In a way, I felt that I had lost Mother to this new guy who barged into my life unexpectedly. But at the same time, I was seeing a new side of Mother I had never seen before. _The happier woman who was in love_.

"Me too. Even though all this is a bit overwhelming, I'm glad she found someone who can make her this happy."

As much as I was enjoying my first _proper_ conversation with my new brother, I was horrified when the melody changed and indicated the sign that we were supposed to join our parents on the dance floor.

"Well, good luck, little bro. Bella _hates_ dancing and is horrible at it, so I recommend soaking your feet in green tea later if it swells from her having trodden on them," Jasper winked mischievously at me before strutting over to his blonde twin and asking her to dance. They came forward and joined our parents in a waltz.

I forced my legs to move towards Bella, my hands were sweaty, my heart racing and my mind in a daze. I stared at the beautiful brunette in pale blue halter neck dress than flowed gracefully to her ankles. Her fingers picked nervously at the sequins that formed a belt around her waist and she looked very uncomfortable. I held out my hand to her with a bow, hoping my palm wasn't _too_ sweaty.

"May I… have this dance?" I stared at my new fancy shoes, wincing when my nervousness seeped into my voice.

I felt warm, slender fingers slide over mine. "I do warn you, I _really_ can't dance!" Bella whispered.

I looked at her and smiled as a surge of newfound confidence filled me and I pulled her onto the dance floor. It felt good that someone else was just as panicked as I was in this situation.

"Don't worry, I can't dance very well either," I confessed, my memory of Mother teaching me how to waltz when I was 12. She smiled weakly at me and I started to gently lead her around following the slow melody.

Somehow, we didn't stumble or bump into the other two pairings, and she didn't stomp on my feet. Slowly, her nervous expression faded and a small smile appeared. My own panicked disposition was gone as well, replaced with feeling of content that I was, in a way, bonding with my new sister.

"This isn't so bad," she said.

"Not as horrible I imagined," I joked and she looked at me curiously.

"Imagined?"

"My thoughts were filled with how I would trip and crash us both onto the floor in which Carlisle would proceed to arrest me and send me to the dungeons for hurting his daughter and Mother would be so sad and disappointed of me," I told her.

Bella burst out laughing and my heartbeat seemed to suddenly echo. She looked absolutely beautiful with her head thrown back, the smile across her face and melodious laughter escaping her pink lips.

"You're so weird, Edward!" she giggled.

I forced a smile on my face. "Yeah, I've been told."

Fortunately the song changed, signaling the permission for the guests to join the dance and Bella and I immediately retired with a bow to one another. I headed over to the side of the ballroom, swiping a glass of champagne off a tray and downed it quickly.

 _Just what was that? My heart didn't usually skip a beat like that! Was this some kind of weird romance novel? This doesn't usually happen in real life!_

I jolted as someone tapped my shoulder.

"Mother!" I exclaimed in surprise.

"Come Edward, let us take a walk," Mother smiled, gliding across the floor to one of the wide balconies at the side of the ballroom.

"Are you sure you can do that?" I wondered, jogging after her. _Shouldn't she need to stay at her own party?_

Mother laughed as she placed leaned on the railing, gazing up at the dark sky. "I don't think they have a problem with me getting some fresh air with my son. Now, how are you feeling?"

I blinked. "I'm well, Mother. Why do you ask?"

"You look a little disoriented. But you danced beautifully earlier with Isabella," she smiled.

"Isabella?"

"Princess Bella does not like to be addressed by her full name. Though it's such a beautiful name for a beautiful girl," Mother said softly.

 _Isabella… Just like Mother said, it suits her marvelously…_

 _Stop it, Edward!_ I shook myself firmly and pushed Bella's image from my mind.

" _You_ were the one who taught me how to dance, Mother. I'm only lucky my body still remembers," I chuckled.

Mother, too, laughed at the memory. "Oh yes, you only came up to my shoulders then."

"I remember whining about my height," I murmured. I had hit puberty late so I only started gaining height around 14 years old.

"Yes, and I remember telling you that good things come to those who wait. Now you're so tall and handsome, my son. I'm _so_ _proud_ of you," she said, stroking my cheek.

"I'm not doing anything in particular for you to be proud, Mother," I mumbled, embarrassed but confused.

"Just being here, taking these life-changing alterations to stride and handling them so well, rising to the occasion of taking the title as _Prince_. It makes me so proud to have raised such a wonderful son." Mother pulled me into a tight embrace and I held her for a while before gently pushing her away.

"Now, Mother, I'll wrinkle your dress. You are a wonderful mother, taking good care of me all by yourself. You'll have the chance to care for the Royal Family, who have been deprived of a Mother's touch for a _long_ time. I believe you'll be a wonderful mother to them too," I told her.

"Yes, I believe that too." We both turned around in surprise. Jasper was grinning widely as he strode towards us.

"Now it's _my_ turn to spend some time with my mother, Edward. I hope you don't mind," he said jokingly.

"Not at all," I laughed.

Jasper knelt before Mother, holding his hand out. "Milady, may I have this dance?"

Mother giggled. " _Of course_ , Jasper."

I smiled fondly as my brother led Mother back into the ballroom.

 _I suppose this isn't so bad._

* * *

Why do I keep coming to stable conclusions without even fully experiencing anything? I totally take that back.

"Prince Edward, _please_ pay attention! This is _important_!" Professor Banner scolded, rapping the long ruler in his hand on my desk.

I moaned and slapped my forehead, nearly knocking the crown off my head.

My crown.

It contained jewels that 'represented' my position. Carlisle had sapphire, Mother's was jade, Jasper garnet, Rosalie ruby and Bella aquamarine.

Mine is a topaz. My entire crown was decorated with big and small topaz stones. And so was my Royal Crest.

 _After the wedding party and dinner, we had a small family ceremony in the throne room where only the Royal family and castle servants were to attend._

 _It was the time where Mother and I were given our Royal Crests. Since the individual Royal Crests were sacred and hidden from public, only those who lived in the castle or worked for the Royal family knew about them._

 _"These Crests will open_ any _door in the palace that you are entitled to enter. It is the representation of your very existence in this family so treasure it well," Carlisle said solemnly._

 _He came forward and took Mother's hand, touching her wedding band, the one she shared with him. "For you, Esme," he murmured, gently clasping something shiny around her wrist._

 _Mother's face softened and she brought it close to her face for a closer look. The bracelet was simple looking but clearly expensive and detailed. It was a white gold bracelet with a single round shaped charm hanging on it, along with small jades embedded along the chain. It had a design on it that was too small for me to make out but I suspected it was her Royal Crest._

 _Carlisle then moved on to me. "And, for you, Edward," he said, taking my wrist and tying a leather cuff around my wrist. It had topaz stones along the stitching and a small bronze plate in the centre with a design that took the shape of some kind of bird._

 _"The members of the Royal Family have always passed down tales of mythical creatures that were believed to have inhabited the Earth thousands of years ago, so each member of the family always has a mythical creature that represents them," Carlisle explained._

 _"_ Mine _is a Pegasus," Jasper grinned, pointing to his ear cuff. "Rose's is a Mermaid. Show them yours, Rose!"_

 _Rosalie glared at her brother but obligingly pointed to an antique-looking, bronze round pendant with a mermaid design resting on her chest._

 _"Bella, show them yours too," Jasper encouraged._

 _Bella smiled and pulled a locket from beneath her dress' neckline. "It's probably not clear from here, but mine is a Water Sprite," she said shyly._

 _"Mine is a Griffin," Carlisle said, pulling out his pocket watch that had a modern design compared to the one he passed down to me from his father._

 _"I can't tell what mine is from the design," Mother said apologetically._

 _"That's alright, at first I couldn't tell_ mine _was a Pegasus either," Jasper laughed._

 _"Yours is a Dragon. Though they have been known for their fiery power, our old legends speak of them as kindhearted creatures who ruled the lands alongside the Griffins with kind hearts._ Yours _is a match with_ mine _," Carlisle told her fondly._

 _"And Edward, in case you can't tell yours, it's a Phoenix," Jasper piped helpfully._

 _A phoenix…_

"Prince Edward! _Really_ , please pay attention!" Professor Banner huffed impatiently, clearly exasperated.

I jolted from my memory and immediately sat up straight. " _Right_! Sorry, sir."

I moaned inwardly. I was told before going to bed, on the day of the wedding and crowning, that my Royal lessons would begin the very next day and that I would be tutored privately in order to catch up on the things I've missed out for the past 19 years.

Professor Banner was designated as my _Royal Studies professor_ and he covered all sorts of topics ranging from the history of the different kingdoms to their diverse cultures and beliefs. He was very knowledgeable and an experienced tutor but even he could not stay patient when it was clear that I was _bored_ out of my mind in his class. It's only been a week since the start of my lessons but Professor Banner looked to be at wits end.

Of course, his classes weren't the only ones I was to be attending. There was _dance_ lessons where I got to learn all sorts of different types traditional dances from different kingdoms; _military_ lessons, where I was trained to defend and attack; _social etiquette_ class, where I was taught what to wear for different occasions and how to behave; as well as various other lessons.

On different days, I have different lessons depending on the tutors' availability and every morning, Ben would read out my schedule while I dressed and he would proceed to escort me to every class. Of course, he didn't stay for the duration; I once asked where he went and he explained that he had _other various duties_ to do but he was assigned the job of ensuring I go to every class for the first month of being in the castle in the case I got lost since he was my personal servant.

I slumped my head on the desk as soon as the lesson ended and Professor Banner grudgingly left the room, obviously unhappy at my unenthusiastic attitude.

"Hey, little bro! Looking a bit depressed there!" I chuckled as I sat up, looking at my brother who was leaning against the door casually.

In the past week, I had attended military classes with Jasper as my trainer and naturally, being a part of the Royal Military made him more than qualified to mentor me. Carlisle thought it would be good for him to be in charge of me and give us an opportunity to get to know one another better _. I liked Carlisle even more for that_. That was one of the only classes I enjoyed as Jasper had been very patient with teaching me how to defend myself as well as attacking others. During our spar sessions, we had gotten to bond well.

"Not enjoying the _wonderful_ history of King Roland the third?" Jasper teased, looking at the chalkboard, where Professor Banner had left the huge diagram of the past of the previous King, Carlisle's father.

"Well… It _is_ interesting, I've just never really liked history," I said carefully. I didn't want to offend him by telling him that I _really_ didn't care what King Roland's childhood was like; he _was_ his grandfather.

My brother laughed, " _Sure_. Don't worry, Banner bores me too. It would probably do you good to read up on King Roland instead, it's far easier than listening to his lectures. I'll pass you some of the ones I borrowed from the castle's library when I was younger."

"That'll be great!" I told him.

"So, you wanna spar a bit before lunch?"

* * *

"Alright, bro, goodnight," Jasper called out before heading down the hallway to his bedroom and I turned to go to my parents' bedroom. Benjamin had just informed me that Mother requested my presence.

A week of living royal life has passed. A melancholy feeling seemed to seep through me as I sighed again. Even though I was getting along well with Carlisle and Jasper, every time I saw Rosalie in passing, she seemed to look at me as though I were the dirt beneath her shiny high-heeled shoe. Bella was hardly seen around the castle apart from dinner time which was the _only_ meal that the Royal Family had together every day as part of tradition. Even then, she barely spoke but it seemed to me that she and Mother were getting along well, which I was grateful for.

I walked into her sitting room to find Mother looking up from her book. Her face broke out into a smile when she saw me.

She patted the seat beside her. "I've been meaning to ask how you're getting along with the classes."

I felt my own smile slipped off my face a bit as I went to sit with her. "I've been doing well, I suppose."

"Jasper has spoken highly of your combat progress," Mother told me, looking amused.

I laughed. "He's a good teacher."

"However, I've also been told that you're not doing very well to stay focused in Professor Banner and Varner's classes." Her tone turned reproachful.

My shoulders drooped. "Mother, you know I don't like history and I'm not interested in dancing for 3 hours straight," I sighed.

"Yes, I am aware. But as your mother, I also know that you seem a little off for the past couple of days. Is something wrong?" she asked, her expression concerned.

I pursed my lips and wondered if I should tell her.

 _"Never be afraid to be my little boy," Mother had told me._

Taking a deep breath, I decided to be honest with my mother.

"I missed my friends. Would it be possible... to see them? Just for a while?" I asked hesitatingly.

Mother looked at me in surprise. "Of course, Edward! I'd never think to stop you from meeting them. In fact, you can invite them over and let them see your life here. I'm sure they're worried and concerned about how you're living."

I felt my chest warm as I smiled. "Thank you, Mother. I'll do just that."

"Oh, but do inform Carlisle and Benjamin of their arrival."

"I'll be sure to do that!" I promised and leaned forward to hug her.

Mother laughed. "Now head off to bed. Tomorrow, we're going out for our first family outing so rest well." She kissed my forehead and I wished her goodnight before leaving, a plan forming in my head.

Tonight, I'd write out invitations to have my friends spend a day with me in the castle. And tomorrow after the outing, I'd have to remember to pass them to Benjamin to be delivered before night fall as the mail delivery service stops after sunset.

A wide grin stretched across my face as I hurried back to my quarters. I couldn't wait to see Emmett and Alice again!

* * *

 **SNEAK** **PEEK**

 _"We'll be riding the horses to the meadow and I'm guessing you might not have ridden one before, you need to choose the right bottoms so that your ass won't hurt as much," Jasper had grinned._

 _"Wait, riding… horses…?"_

 _And there you have it. The worst day of my life._

* * *

A/N: So Edward is starting to fall in love with Bella. Remember that this isn't really incest, they are completely **unrelated** by blood. I hope you like this chapter, feel free to leave ideas and comments in a review!


	5. In Humiliation

**DISCLAIMER** : Majority of characters belong to the author of Twilight Saga, the amazing Stephanie Meyer. If I owned it, I wouldn't be writing this.

This chapter is a little shorter that the others but I hope you like it! Please review!

* * *

I sighed heavily as I stared at the crown on the table. I was in my room and sitting at my study table, feeling almost sulky. Today was _officially_ the _worst_ day of my life, if not the _most_ humiliating.

This morning, Ben had woken me up and brought me to the dining room where the Royal Family had breakfast together, which according to him, was pretty rare. Carlisle had excitedly discussed with us regarding where we wanted to go for our first family outing and Jasper eagerly mentioned a trip to a meadow just behind the castle grounds and Bella helpfully suggested a picnic in the royal gardens after that. Since nobody else had any objections, Mother happily agreed and it was settled.

We were to change for outing attire and meet near the stables in an hour. Just before I headed into my room, Jasper had grabbed me and insisted to help me choose my outfit of the day.

 _"Why?" I hissed in irritation._

 _"We'll be riding the horses to the meadow and guessing you might not have ridden one before, you need to choose the right bottoms so that your ass won't hurt as much," Jasper had grinned._

 _"Wait, riding… horses…?"_

And there you have it. The _worst_ day of my life.

Jasper had rummaged through my closet and made me wear all sorts of fancy-looking wear that I wasn't sure I needed like the thing he called ' _jodhpurs'_ , a dark brown ' _leather show vest'_ over a beige long sleeved ' _show shirt'_ and black _'half-chaps'_. He also rambled about whether or not I should wear a ' _show coat_ ' when he passed me a pair of black equestrian gloves but decided not to because he didn't want me to be _too_ uncomfortable for my first ride.

After we all gathered at the stables, I had realized everyone wore just about matching outfits but in different colours. Carlisle introduced Mother and me to the stable master, Michael, who was a _surprisingly_ young man _(around his mid-twenties perhaps?)_ with baby blonde hair and blue eyes. He and Jasper seemed friendly enough, when the latter clapped Michael's back as a friendly greeting. Rosalie, Jasper and Bella headed to their own horses.

Jasper excitedly introduced me to his bay Thoroughbred, Ducati. _"He's 12 years old and I've had him ever since he was born!"_

Michael explained to Mother and me that members of the Royal Family would have our own _personal_ horses for leisure purposes but for travelling or battle, we would be given stronger and more trained breeds to ensure our safety. He also introduced us to _Braveheart_ , Carlisle's jet-black Friesian horse; Rosalie's elegant-looking palomino Andalusian mare, _Lillian_ ; and Bella's grey Lipizzan mare, _Twilight_. Compared to the others', Twilight was a little smaller and scruffier-looking.

While I was preoccupied with Jasper's eager tales of young Ducati and Mother was complimenting Rosalie's beautiful mare, Michael disappeared into one of the stalls and led out a chestnut mare.

"This is a _Budyonny_ horse, Your Majesty," he announced, approaching Mother who was looking _very_ excited. "Her name is Apple, she is _very_ well-trained." Mother was all over the animal, clearly in _love_ , cooing softly and stroking its mane.

Michael went and brought out another grey horse that looked similar to Bella's Twilight, only bigger. "And for you, Your Highness, this is _Aston_. Only 9 years old; fast, agile and well-trained."

While I got to know my horse, the others were already on theirs, my siblings started to trot around the paddock, warming up. Carlisle and Michael helped Mother onto Apple and coaxed her through walking and trotting. When Mother became confident enough, Carlisle got onto Braveheart and steered her into the paddock to practice.

"Come on, Your Highness, _your_ turn," Michael said cheerfully. I nervously got onto Aston with his help, setting uncomfortably on the leather saddle, hyper-aware of the swaying animal beneath me. Michael instructed me on where to place my feet and how to hold the reins.

"Won't I be really heavy?" I had asked hesitantly, feeling sorry for Aston and _wishing_ I was a few pounds lighter.

"Of course _not_ , sir. We take your weight into consideration before selecting the right horse for. Rest assured, Aston has been _trained_ well and carried _much_ heavier weights before," Michael said, sounding slightly offended that I had doubted him.

Jasper rode over and with Michael's help, I managed to nudge Aston into a trot to the paddock. "Edward, you look a little stiff there, bro," Jasper had frowned.

"You need to _relax_. Don't worry, Aston is a good horse. I've ridden him before I got Twilight," Bella said gently, appearing beside me.

I took a deep breath and tried to loosen my leg muscles that were feeling a bit cramped from trying not to fidget too much. "Okay, okay," I mumbled.

"Do you want to try and canter now?" Michael asked and I paled.

"Sorry, what?"

Michael started to adjust the reins in my hands and my footing, saying "Okay, just try to sit straight, stomach in, don't lose your stirrups, and try not to lean forward too much though it can get a bit bouncy…"

What? What was a stir-up? Bouncy? Canter? Did nobody tell him I've never even seen a real horse before except in books before today? What made him think I knew all these terms?

Suddenly, a sharp jerking movement yanked me out of my panic and I was flying for a very short moment and my arm and butt were in pain.

" _Edward_!"

The others came rushing to me, clambering off their horses. Jasper, Bella and Michael were already kneeling beside me and my brother was pressing on certain spots of my body asking if it hurt.

"Edward, are you alright?" Mother sounded worried as she gently took off my riding hat.

I blinked a few times before realizing that somehow I had fallen off the horse. _How embarrassing_. Aston lowered his head to nuzzle my face as though apologizing and I rubbed his nose.

"Perhaps, this wasn't the best idea," Carlisle said, looking grim.

"I'm alright, _really_."

After much persuasion, they finally believed I was okay and decided to continue with the plan. Only this time, I rode double with Jasper on Ducati while Michael brought Aston back into his stall. Since the journey wasn't that far, it wouldn't injure the horse.

When we reached the beautiful meadow, we dismounted to play in the stream. Carlisle showed Mother the different flowers, Bella lay down in the grass and read a book she brought along, and Rosalie… well, she simply looked bored, trotting around on Lillian. The guards who had come with us remained alert throughout the journey.

After a while, hunger set in, we rode back to the palace and the servants led us towards the back of the palace, where I'd never been to before. The word _garden_ was definitely not the right one to describe it.

There were all kinds of colourful flowers and even a pond with stone paths leading to a gazebo where there was a big round table and chairs, already set for our lunch.

I sat between Jasper and Bella. This time, _thankfully_ , there weren't various kinds of eating utensils, just the standard knife, fork and spoon. We were served different kinds of sandwiches, some cheese, a salad and earl grey tea. I was thirsty after our trip and gracefully brought the cup to my lips for a swig, only to _choke_ at the heat of it, _spray_ it back out and create a _mess_ all over myself as well as the table area in front of me.

My tongue and lips were scalded but I was sure the _rest_ of my face was just as red. The servants rushed forward to help me clean up and replace my food; Mother and Carlisle looked worried and called for a replacement of my tea for something cooler. Jasper and Bella kept asking if I was alright but I simply nodded fervently, feeling absolutely _humiliated_. The rest of lunch went by quickly with awkward conversations that I _dare not_ partake in, and when Carlisle thanked us for spending the morning and afternoon together, Rosalie threw me a dirty look and I felt myself _shrink_ down into my shoes for having ruined the entire thing.

I sighed again as my mind tried to shake the memories away. The crown sat in front me with topaz jewels sparkling. Was I really cut out to be Prince?

Singing for the third time that evening, I groaned and rubbed my face tiredly, before my sights fell on two envelopes sitting innocently at the corner of my desk.

 _Alice and Emmett's invitations!_

I grabbed them and called for the guards to fetch Benjamin for me.

"Benjamin, I want to send these to my friends," I told him hurriedly once he arrived.

" _Letters_ , Prince Edward?"

"Yes, to my two _best_ friends. I want to invite them over here for a day, is that okay?" I asked worriedly, hoping he would not refuse.

Benjamin looked slightly surprised. "Of _course_ , Your Highness. When will they be visiting?"

"Next Saturday, if they agree."

"Very well, Prince Edward. I will have these delivered and prepare for their visitation," he said and bowed.

"Thank you very much!" I exclaimed.

"You're very welcome, sir. Have a good night." With that, Benjamin took the letters and dismissed himself.

 _I truly could not wait for them to come_. I pictured Emmett's boisterous laughter and Alice's high-pitch squeals filling this hollow room and felt warm at the thought of having them here with me.

* * *

" _Emmett_? That's a strange name."

Jasper and I were having a light sparring match in the courtyard when I told him about inviting my friends over.

"Yeah, a strange name for a strange guy. I think you two would get along though. He's like a giant kid and _loves_ pranks and fighting," I told him, dodging a blow before taking a swing.

Jasper laughed and dodged before hitting me unexpectedly in the side. "He sounds great! What about your other friend?"

I took the hand he offered, got off the floor and dusted myself off. "Oh, Alice? She's really fun too, though she can be a bit loud."

" _Alice_? A girl?" Jasper frowned.

"Yeah, why the face?" I asked, lowering down my hands. _Seems that sparring session has paused_.

"Nothing, I just didn't know you had a girlfriend," he said.

I nearly choked. " _What_? Alice isn't my girlfriend!"

"Oh sorry. Emmett's then?" he inquired.

"Would you _stop_? _No_! We're all really close like family. Alice _may_ live with Emmett and his family but they're _not_ together," I tried to explain.

"Wait, they _live_ together but they're _not_ a couple?" Poor Jasper looked _so_ confused right now.

I sighed. "Alice's parents are working in another kingdom so Emmett's parents took her in because she wanted to stay here. Just so you know, she sleeps with Emmett's sister, so _don't_ jump to conclusions. Now, Alice has been living with them for over a year; she's _practically_ a part of their family."

"Oh. Sorry, Ed. I've always been told while growing up that there is no such thing as men and women being _just_ friends. So I assumed… Sorry," my brother said, looking sheepish.

"Who told you _that_?"

"Rose."

"Huh, well, she's _wrong_. The three of us are _friends_ and nothing more. You'll see what a great person she is and be friends with her too," I promised.

"I'll be glad to meet them then," Jasper smiled.

* * *

 _Dear Edward,_

 _We were so happy to receive your letters! And_ of course _we're coming! Don't think we'll miss a chance to see_ you _(and your mom) again!_

 _Emmett's_ so _excited right now, I can hear him celebrating_ really _loudly downstairs. Emily's getting annoyed at him. You'd think that being siblings, she'd be used to his moods by now. Ouch, I think I heard her hit him with something. Well, he probably deserved it. But I better go down to shut him up before the neighbours complain._

 _Anyway, we're_ definitely _going to see you on Saturday – that's a promise!_

 _Lots of love,_

 _Alice (and Emmett!)_

I smiled at the letter. I was so glad they were doing well.

"Good evening, Edward."

I jumped and whirled around.

Bella looked amused. I blinked repeatedly at her, almost gawking. She wasn't in formal attire that we all usually wear around the palace.

She had black _jeans_ and a _denim_ tunic on. Were we _allowed_ to dress so casually? Why did no one _tell_ me that? I would not bother dressing up everyday if that were so.

"Um, Edward?"

I realized I was clearly staring open mouthed at her and quickly tried to think of something to cover my deranged behaviour.

"Oh! Um, my friends wrote me a letter, they're coming to visit on Saturday," I said, holding up the parchment.

Bella smiled. "That sounds very nice."

"Um, sorry but are we allowed to wear _casual_ clothes in the palace grounds? Somehow I was under the impression that it wasn't," I half-mumbled.

Bella laughed. _Damn, she's so pretty when she laughs. Stop it, Edward!_

"Technically, it is _preferred_ for us to wear formal attire; after all, you never know if an ambassador or leaders from other kingdoms would pay us a visit. But I usually dress the way I want. Besides, I was gardening with Esme earlier. Wearing a dress when gardening is not exactly _ideal_ ," she smiled.

"Wait, so actually I'm not required to wear dress pants or formal shirts?" _Why did I let Ben choose my everyday wear then?_

"Edward, you're not even required to wear your _crown_. Only for formal occasions or in the company of visitors." Bella was clearly trying to stifle her laughter at my expression, which I'm sure must be showing extreme shock.

"Then why does the _rest_ of them wear them everyday? Even you did!" I spluttered.

"Well, the King and Queen _needs_ to; it looks more dignified and enforces a sign of respect. But Rose just loves looking beautiful and standing out, and her crown makes her look more… _important_. Jas may not look like the type to show off but he and Rose are twins so he likes his crown on too. I wore mine this past week because I've been spending a lot of time with Esme so I wanted to look nice," she explained.

I groaned and rubbed my nose bridge in exasperation. "So _that's_ why!"

Bella laughed again. _Even in casual attire, she looks so beautiful. Seriously, stop it!_ A chime sounded through the castle grounds.

"There's the dinner bell. Let's go," I mumbled, mentally berating myself for thinking about my new sister in such a way.

* * *

 **SNEAK PEEK**

 _"Edward! Oh, you look great!" Alice cried, running into my arms to squeeze the breath out of me._

 _"Let the man breathe, Pixie!" Emmett chuckled but clapped me in the shoulder once she released me. "Good to see you, Eddie! All rosy-cheeked and dressed up, you look like Emily's Ken doll!" He laughed._

 _I sighed at his bad joke but smiled. "It's nice to see you two again."_

 _Jasper cleared his throat slightly behind me._

 _"Oh yeah, guys, this is my brother, Jasper. Jasper, these are my friends, Emmett and Alice."_

 _"Yo there!" Emmett exclaimed cheekily and I rolled my eyes at him._

 _Jasper grinned in good humour. "Yo, Emmett." He turned to Alice, whose eyes grew wide and she smiled happily at him._

 _Alice offered her hand, which Jasper took and kissed. "You've kept me waiting a long time," she murmured._

 _Jasper looked surprised and confused but said, "I'm sorry, ma'am."_

 _Okay, what just happened?_

* * *

A/N: Hehe, I wanted to keep that fated meeting between Alice and Jasper! And okay, so I'm a bit unsure of how to get Edward to fall in love with Bella and vice versa. Currently, he's just attracted to her. Maybe I'll introduce a rival? Oh, and in FF, I noticed in the 'manage stories' settings, there is a traffic graph that shoes the number of viewers and the number of visitors. What's the difference? Anyways, next chapter, the Royal Family meets Edward's best friends!


	6. Fated One

**DISCLAIMER** : Majority of characters belong to the author of Twilight Saga, the amazing Stephanie Meyer. If I owned it, I wouldn't be writing this.

 **A/N:** I have to apologise for some typos and other errors I may have made so far through the chapters. I do try my best to keep rechecking them before posting but I don't have a beta and I sometimes do overlook my mistakes so I hope it doesn't bother anyone that badly yet. And usually I do have a capacity of words I try to hit for each chapter but there will be some that will be shorter of longer than others, I hope that's okay.

* * *

The week passed quickly. I found myself growing closer to Jasper and Bella. Jasper _truly_ became like a brother to me and I often sought his company. He came to many of my classes, helping me through, to the disapproval of Professor Banner. I got to know that Bella continued to spend time with Mother, when she wasn't caught with some Royal duties that requested the presence of the Queen of course, with little things like gardening or sewing. Because of this, during certain times of the day, I found excuses to pop in and check on Mother. _Not to see Bella, of course. She just happened to be there_.

On Friday night, during dinner, Carlisle addressed me. "Edward, I heard from Esme that your friends are coming over tomorrow. Are you excited?"

" _Very_! I cannot wait to see them," I said eagerly.

"Well, tomorrow is all he could talk about all _week_ ," Jasper joked.

Carlisle laughed. "What have you had planned?"

My grin disappeared and I'm sure my face was completely blank.

"Oh dear," Mother giggled.

"Edward, you haven't planned _anything_?" Bella asked in concern.

I tried to think hard. I was _so_ sure I had some plans in mind. "Umm… I was going to show them around?"

Jasper burst into laughter. "You haven't thought about it at all, have you?" he gasped in between guffaws.

"Stop it, brother. It's _rude_. Edward can't help it since he's _clearly_ not the type to plan ahead," Rosalie said, her nose high.

Jasper's laughter stopped short and Bella frowned at her sister.

"Showing them around sounds good. It will be nice to let your friends see the environment you live in so they won't worry too much," Mother said quickly.

"And I'm sure my children will help you plan tomorrow's activities. _Right_?" Carlisle said encouragingly.

Rosalie clearly did not look like she was willing but her siblings nodded.

"If I may, Your Majesty," Benjamin, who was standing quietly at the side of the dinner room, spoke up hesitatingly.

"Yes, Benjamin? Do you have an idea for Edward?" Carlisle asked.

"Well, _yes_ , Your Majesty. When Prince Edward told me about their visitation last week, I prepared a list of activities for them in the event that Prince Edward may need it."

I sighed in relief. " _Thank you_ , Benjamin!"

"You're very welcome, Prince Edward. If you'd like, I can let you know more after dinner," the castle steward said.

"That would be very nice." I smiled and Benjamin bowed before retreating back to his position just as our empty plates were replaced by treacle pudding for dessert.

"Oh, and Edward, remember to introduce your friends to us tomorrow," Carlisle said.

I blinked. "Introduce them?"

"Yes. You're my son, of course I'd like to know the people who have been very good to you," he replied with a kind smile.

My chest felt weirdly warm at that.

"Yes and I'd _love_ to see Emmett and Alice again," Mother chuckled slightly, clearly remembering what they were like.

"Yes, so you can bring them for an audience in the _throne_ _room_ ," Rosalie said rather coldly and I nearly winced.

The throne room was usually used for audiences with the important leaders and visitors from the other kingdoms. Bringing my friends of no ranking into that room for an audience with the Royal Family would be almost equivalent to showing them just where they stood in society.

Thankfully, Carlisle had other plans. "Well, that may be a bit _too_ formal. Let us all have lunch together instead! We can all introduce ourselves then."

"Okay!" I agreed happily.

Once dinner was over, I told Benjamin to wait outside my room while I headed over to the castle gardens.

As I stood amongst the flowers and gazed at the dark sky, I heard someone walking up from behind me.

"Penny for your thoughts?"

I turned to see Jasper grinning mischievously at me.

"I'm just _really_ excited, I don't think I will fall asleep immediately if I went to my room so I decided to look around for a little while," I told him.

"Hey, if you don't mind, I can come with you to fetch them at the grounds later. I'm quite eager to meet them, after _all_ you've been telling me about them," he said.

"Sure. They're arriving at around 8.30 am. Meet you for breakfast at 6?"

"I wouldn't miss it."

* * *

"Fidgeting and pacing around like that is hardly the behaviour for a _Prince_ ," my bother teased as I waited anxiously.

"Oh, _silence_ , you! Why aren't they here yet?" I muttered, unable to keep still.

"Maybe because it's _only_ 8am? They're not going to arrive for another _half an hour_ ," Jasper reminded me.

"Yeah but – _There they are_!" I exclaimed, seeing the Royal carriage come in through the giant gates towards us.

I went forward eagerly just as the carriage stopped just before me and the door opened before the footman could even reach for it, revealing my friends who almost literally jumped out, looking as excited as I was.

" _Edward_! Oh, you look great!" Alice cried, running into my arms to squeeze the breath out of me.

"Let the man _breathe_ , Pixie!" Emmett chuckled but clapped me in the shoulder once she released me. "Good to see you, Eddie! All rosy-cheeked and dressed up, you look like Emily's _Ken_ _doll_!" He laughed.

I sighed at his joke but smiled. "It's nice to see you two again."

Jasper cleared his throat slightly behind me.

"Oh yeah, guys, this is my brother, Jasper. Jasper, these are my friends, Emmett and Alice."

"Yo there!" Emmett exclaimed cheekily and I shook my head at him.

Jasper grinned in good humour. "Yo, Emmett." He turned to Alice, whose eyes grew wide and she smiled happily at him.

Emmett and I glanced at each other at her expression.

"Hello, Alice. It's nice to finally meet you," Jasper said politely.

Alice offered her hand, which Jasper took and kissed. "You've kept me waiting a long time," she murmured.

Jasper looked surprised and confused but said, "I'm sorry, ma'am."

 _Okay, what just happened?_

* * *

"Oh _wow_ , Edward! Your room is _beyond_ gorgeous! And look at the _view_ from here!" Alice tittered about flitting around my room while squealing and gasping at the littlest things.

"I gotta say, man. A room fit for a Prince," Emmett whistled.

I gave a little smile and sank down on one of the chairs at the table set.

"Ed, bro? You okay?" Emmett frowned.

Alice turned around at his concerned tone. "What is it, Edward?"

I sighed. "It is nothing, guys. I know I ought to be happy. I have to consider that I'm pretty lucky to be able to live like this and everything but sometimes…"

Alice squeezed my shoulder. "Edward, just remember. It was a huge transaction from your old life to this. You're bound to miss certain things. But that's _okay_."

"Yeah, if you ever need to escape, I'll smuggle you out and hide ya in my closet," Emmett said, looking a bit proud.

"Emmett," Alice sighed but smiled when she saw my spirits lift.

"Thank you. Both of you. I've truly missed your words and company," I said earnestly.

But at this, Emmett and Alice looked at one another, frowning.

"What?" I blinked.

"Hey, Eddie-boy. Can't help but notice, you've been talking _really_ weird since we got here," Emmett commented, looking at me in confusion.

" _Weird_?" I echoed.

Alice immediately hastened to speak. "No, not _weird_! Just a little… _formal_?"

I frowned too. "How am I being _formal_?"

"There, you're doing it again!" Emmett exclaimed, laughing and I glared at him.

"Well, it's just… your words, tone and… just the way you talk seems very… _proper_. But you _are_ a Prince now so you have to be careful with your speech," Alice said reasonably.

"But… I haven't changed the way I speak at all!" I cried.

"You're still doing it," Emmett pointed out and I huffed in frustration.

"It's not really your words but the _way_ you speak. Like a little slower and more… _dignified_? It's hard to explain. It's not so very noticeable but we're your best friends, so we notice these kind of things," Alice explained.

I sighed. "Well, maybe it could be because of the social etiquette classes I've been taking."

" _Etiquette_?!" Emmett exclaimed before his entire face slowly turned red then purple.

"Oh, go ahead before you suffocate," I rolled my eyes as he began to guffaw loudly.

Alice, too, giggled. "S-sorry, Edward. It's really not that f-funny. E-Emmett's the one making me l-laugh."

"Oh before I forget, can you explain what happened earlier? That was so bizarre!" I said quickly, steering the subject clear.

It worked as Emmett's loud laughter came to a stop immediately and he swung to Alice. "Yeah, Pixie! What's up with the _Jasper_ _thing_?"

A dreamy look overcame the small girl's face. "That's because I _saw_ him. _Years_ ago. And now I've _finally_ met him," she said softly.

Emmett and I gaped at her.

" _Saw_? As in..." I trailed off hesitatingly.

" _Shit_! Your brother is her _fated_ one! _Damn_!" Emmett half-shouted in disbelief.

 _I should probably explain this._

 _4 years ago, when Emmett met Alice, he had just turned 14 and was going through a rebellious phase. He had a nasty temper, lashing out at everyone around him. Even though we were close friends, he pushed me away too. One night, after getting acquainted with a strange traveller who came to visit from a faraway kingdom, he accepted a packet of white grounded powder from the man who promised him that it would help him relax and free him from all the tension. He kept it with him but it never crossed his mind to actually_ consume _it until one day, he had a quarrel with his mother regarding his declining grades and horrid attitude. He stormed out of the house and walked aimlessly around the village before collapsing in a deserted alley, raging at the world internally. He then remembered the packet of powder that was supposed to 'free him from tension and help him relax' so he decided to take it._

 _All of a sudden, the girl who had moved into the house down his street just the day before, appeared out of nowhere and knocked the thing out of his hands, making it scatter on the ground. She proceeded to give him a harsh slap in the face and berate him about irresponsibility and making his parents and sister sad. Emmett was stunned. He only knew of her because the village had been buzzing about their move-in but his family hadn't formally introduced themselves yet, so how did she know he had a sister and more importantly…_

 _"How did you find me? You couldn't have possibly be 'passing by' in this area so conveniently."_

 _"No I wasn't, don't be silly. I_ saw _you and what you were going to do, so I stopped you," Alice had shrugged nonchalantly as though it made all the sense in the world._

 _"How could you have_ seen _me…?" Emmett was so confused. This alley was right near the edge of the village, there was no way a little girl was playing in this area when it was getting dark, and she already said she wasn't 'passing by' so how did she_ see _him?_

 _Alice had simply smiled. "I just have a knack of knowing things. Now let's go back. Your family is_ really _worried." She offered him her hand. She had offered her_ tiny _hand to Emmett who was at_ least _3 times her size to help him up and Emmett chuckled in spite of himself._

 _Just like that, the two became friends from then on. Emmett knocked on my door a few days later to apologise for being a jerk and introduced me to Alice, who had chirped, "Hello, Edward! It's nice to finally meet you! I'm Alice and I'm 12 years old! Will you play the piano for me one of these days?"_

 _I had glared at Emmett but he immediately protested that he hadn't told her about my being able to play the piano. "I just know," Alice had smiled. Being a bit slow in his reaction, Emmett then hollered, "Wait, you're_ TWELVE _?!"_

 _I only smiled in amusement at them when Alice demanded to know just how old he thought she was, by which Emmett had replied, "Dunno, maybe 8?" Alice promptly whacked his arm, which I doubted hurt Emmett._

 _Only months after this encounter did Emmett and I slowly realise that Alice's instincts that seemed to know way too many things were a form of some psychic power she had that was similar to_ clairvoyance _, which meant she had visions of the future. (After the rebellious phase, Emmett had easily slipped into another phase that consisted of a lot of supernatural 'investigations' and reading of books on sorcery, vampires and werewolves. Typical Emmett.)_

 _Alice was only too happy to_ see _when we realised her abilities and told us that we were the_ only _ones to know her secret, but that was okay because we were going to be friends for a very_ very _long time so she could trust us. Her parents only thought that she had very good instincts but that was it and she didn't want to tell them because she had foreseen that it might worry them and they might have become overwhelmingly overprotective of her._

 _Around last year, after it had been decided that Alice would move in with Emmett's family, she had a vision about her 'fated one'. She excitedly told us about him, how dreamy he was, how she had fallen in love with him though they hadn't met yet and etc.… Emmett went nuts about how much she would talk about him but luckily she stopped after she realised she wasn't about to meet him in person for a while._

"So Jasper is really your 'fated one'?" I asked slowly.

Alice nodded with a smile. "He looked and acted _just_ like how I saw he would."

"Wow, I always thought you might have been making him up or something," Emmett laughed and Alice glared at him.

The big man held his hands up in surrender, "Hey, can you blame me? You were talking about some blonde _gorgeous_ knight-in-armour who had the most _gentlemanly_ manners and _sweet_ personality; _no way_ does a guy like that exist!"

Alice huffed, "Well, we just _met_ him so he does!"

"I didn't see no gorgeous knight-in-armour with sweet personality just now, shrimp."

I simply tuned out their bickering, already getting used to this overly familiar routine. Just then, I remembered Benjamin's plans from the night before.

 _"After showing them to your room, you can bring them around to the gardens and relax for a bit before the lunch bell goes."_

"Hey, guys!" I said loudly, interrupting their argument.

"Do you want to see the palace gardens?"

* * *

The three of us chatted and got caught up on the way and in the gardens. While sitting in the gazebo, I found out that Leah had taken great charge of the bakery, helping Aunt Rebecca design new cakes and pastries that had made our bakery even more popular with the village. Jacob also dropped by a few times to check on them and help out a bit during the peak hours. Emily had followed her older brother's footsteps and just signed up to be the manager for the school's sports team as an extra-curricular activity. Emmett sounded proud of his sister even though his exact words were, "Don't think she'll ever be able to get rowdy guys to listen to her!"

Alice also mentioned that she also recently received a letter from her parents and that their business was doing very well. They also sent me their regards and Mother their congratulations for her marriage and crowning of Queen.

A while into our light conversation, the lunch bell sounded and Benjamin seemed to materialise out of the blue at the entrance of the gardens.

"Prince Edward? Lunch will be served in ten minutes. The King and Queen along with His Highness and Her Highnesses will be pleased if Mr Emmett and Miss Alice were to join them for lunch. We have prepared quite a feast for our guests."

I blinked. _Usually, Benjamin was always polite, but today it was extremely so._

"Great, because I'm starving!" Emmett jumped up.

Alice elbowed him hard before smiling at Benjamin. "We would be _delighted_ to join the Royal Family for lunch," she said just as politely.

"Right this way then," Benjamin said, showing the way.

"I didn't know they really used the His Majesty, Your Highness thingies for real," Emmett piped as we followed Benjamin to the dining room.

I simply rolled my eyes. "They do, but usually _only_ in the presence of company. It's not used as often around just us."

"That's really interesting to know," Alice commented.

As we got closer to our destination, I could make out two figures waiting just outside.

" _Esme_!" Alice squealed, spotting Mother and running into her arms.

Mother laughed indulgently and squeezed her gently. "Hello, little Alice."

I was surprised to see Mother and Carlisle waiting but my siblings were not to be seen.

"We thought it would be more pleasant if we met your friends properly before going in for lunch," Carlisle explained.

"That's nice of you," I thanked him.

"Hiya, Esme! Or _Your Majesty_!" Emmett said loudly with an exaggerated bow.

"Oh, Emmett, I've missed your sense of humour," Mother giggled, patting his cheek affectionately.

"So, _you're_ the famous Emmett! Esme has been telling me all about your pranks and practical jokes," Carlisle said.

Emmett waggled his eyebrows at him jokingly. "Well, My King, I only have the best pranks in the kingdom!"

My father laughed indulgingly. "It's _very_ nice to meet you, Emmett and Alice. You may call me Carlisle. Any friend of Edward's is a friend of ours. I bet you're all hungry by now so let's go in for lunch."

* * *

 **SNEAK PEEK**

 _"Wow, Edward," Emmett breathed dreamily. "She's really beautiful..."_

 _Jasper and I looked at each other._

 _"Well, her face is," Jasper said slowly._

 _"But her personality is a little..." I trailed off._

 _"I think I just saw an angel..."_

* * *

So next chapter will see Emmett and Rosalie's first meeting. I hope the pace of this story is not too fast or rushing. I'm sorry this chapter was a little late as I was sitting for my end-of-semester exams. But now I'm finally in my two week holiday, hopefully I will get to work a bit more on this. Feel free to let me know your thoughts, they motivate me so much!


	7. Angel

**DISCLAIMER** : This is a work of fiction created by myself, the original Twilight belongs to the author of Twilight Saga, the amazing Stephanie Meyer. If I owned it, I wouldn't be writing a fanfiction.

 **A/N:** Currently, I'm going to be heading into an internship programme that starts mid-March. It's part of my school's curriculum for third-year students to apply what we learnt in school to an actual working environment and to gain some proper experience before graduating. The internship will last 6 months so my updates may slow a little or be a bit inconsistent during that period but I will try my best to balance between work and writing. Thought I should let you guys know beforehand, but I will give little updates on my life that may affect chapter uploads in A/N's like these.

* * *

As we entered the dining room, I could see my siblings already seated but they stood when we made our appearance. The tableware were already set for my friends at designated seats across from me. Usually during meals, Mother and Carlisle are seated at the head of the table, Rosalie and Bella beside Carlisle respectively then Jasper and I beside Mother. But today, I could see my usual utensils beside Bella and the ones I recognised from Social Etiquette class as the 'honorary guest's' tableware set next to Jasper.

Bella gave us a warm smile and tilted her head at me as if to signal to the seat beside her. _Wow, she's really beautiful._ A little late, I realised everyone was wearing formal clothes, well, more formal than the usual, and even _Bella_ has her crown. I didn't think I'd needed to dress up for my friends so I was in my usual smart pants and a simple navy dress shirt. I didn't even have a tie on, let alone my crown, which was safely in my glass case back in my closet. Technically, what I was wearing was already fancier than the jeans and shirt I would wear in the village…

As I went over to sit beside Bella, Jasper waved over my friends. "Emmett, you and Alice sit here with me." _Alice must be over the moon right now…_

"Hello, I'm Bella. It's really nice to meet you. Edward has been really looking forward to seeing the both of you," Bella said warmly.

Alice beamed at her as she sat down, "This bear is Emmett McCarty and I'm Alice Brandon! We're going to be great friends!"

I sighed internally. Emmett and I always talked about how Alice's introductions were so unorthodox but as we get older, it somehow becomes more embarrassing to hear compared to when she was 12. But Bella only smiled and nodded.

"I'm First Princess Rosalie. Pleased to meet your acquaintance." Her face was a cold mask and did not look pleased at all. I couldn't tell if she had purposefully mentioned her title or it was just what she normally did.

"Well, as introductions have been made, let us all eat," Carlisle beamed and the maids started to serve first course.

Throughout our meal, Mother and Carlisle brought about light conversation, asking Emmett and Alice regarding their lives in the village, and Jasper and Bella added in small comments while Rosalie stayed her dignified self, eating quietly with grace.

I, on the other hand, was only focused on trying to _breathe_ right and not think ridiculous thoughts while sitting next to Bella so I only noticed something was off when Carlisle asked, "Emmett, Esme told me you were in the school's sports team?"

When there was no reply, I finally looked up to see Emmett blinking blearily. "Emmett?"

Alice smacked his shoulder. "Emmett! It's _rude_ to ignore the King!"

Emmett gave a little jolt and he immediately turned to Carlisle. "Oh! Sorry, I was just… a little…"

Carlisle only chuckled. "That's alright. I've been known to daydream a lot too."

"Are you feeling unwell, Emmett? Or is it the meal?" Mother asked in concern.

" _No_! No, I'm fine. The meal tastes great! Um sorry, what were you asking?" Emmett asked sheepishly.

Jasper laughed. "About your sports team."

"Oh, I was the captain – "

I frowned at Emmett as he spoke. It was unusual of him to behave that way. I took a mental note to ask him about it later.

"- my sister's currently took on the position as the manager, helping the team out now that I've graduated."

"Oh, an athletic family!" Bella said in surprise.

"Yeah, it drives me _crazy_!" Alice told her.

"Why is that?" Carlisle asked curiously.

"Because _no one_ would go shopping with me! They'd rather spend the weekend sweating and chasing after balls in a muddy field!"

The table laughed, though Rosalie's looked a bit forced.

* * *

Jasper and I walked towards the stables, engaging in small talk regarding my new combat techniques that he would teach me in the next lesson while Emmett lumbered behind after us.

Mother decided to bring the girls together for 'some girly feminine activities', which Alice was only delighted for. But Rosalie excused herself by saying she already had an appointment so Mother took Bella and Alice off to have their little fun. Carlisle suggested we follow Benjamin's plans of going to the stables for a ride, just us guys, but he couldn't accompany us as he had an audience with the leader from the village in the East of the Kingdom, so it was just Emmett, Jasper and I.

While we were talking amiably, I couldn't help but hear soft sighs coming from behind me and as the stables got nearer, it got louder until I started to get irritated.

"Emmett, what is wrong with you?!" I burst out, whirling around.

"Nothing, nothing," he mumbled.

"It can't be nothing, you look strange. You _never_ daydream in the presence of food, so don't lie to me," I said firmly.

"Is it… by any chance… _Rosalie_?" Jasper said suddenly.

"What does _she_ have to do with anything?" I frowned.

"Well, I noticed Emmett was staring at her earlier."

" _He was_? Emmett, you were?" I asked, stunned.

My friend's eyes seem to glaze over and he sighed. "Wow, Edward," Emmett breathed dreamily. "She's _really_ beautiful..."

Jasper and I looked at each other.

"Well, her _face_ is," Jasper said slowly.

"But her _personality_ is a little..." I trailed off.

"I think I just saw an angel..." Emmett continued softly as though he hadn't heard us.

I groaned. " _Great_ , we've lost him."

Jasper chuckled. "Maybe horses will get his mind off of her."

We finally reached the stables and Michael looked up from brushing a big Mustang horse.

"Your Highnesses! Have you come to ride your horses?" he greeted, putting aside the brush.

"Yes, could you fetch another for Edward's friend here?" Jasper asked.

Michael eyed him doubtfully. "I do have a horse for his big size. But what is wrong with his face?"

I clapped my hand over my mouth to stop myself from laughing when I saw that Emmett still had a goofy smile on his face.

Jasper chuckled. "Well, he's a bit smitten with my sister at the moment."

"Princess Rosalie?! Why?" Michael looked completely baffled.

My brother shrugged. "Who knows? Says she's an _angel_."

Michael's eyes nearly bugged out and he swivelled around to give Emmett a judgemental look. "Better not to spend _too_ much time around him, Prince Jasper. I think there's something wrong with his eyes and brain."

I choked back my laughter but Jasper grinned. "I may take that advice."

Michael went and brought out our horses along with a bay shire stallion, all of which were already tacked up. I went over and took Aston's reins from him, gently stroking my horse's mane.

"Hello, Aston, remember me?" The horse blew gently on my face. "I hope today's ride will turn out alright."

"Don't worry, you had equestrian lessons during the week after our outing, right?" Jasper said.

After the incident with the horses during the outing, I had equestrian lessons added to my schedule for my own safety because Carlisle said we used horses to travel a lot so it was essential that I learnt how to ride one properly. Aston had been really well behaved while I learnt with Michael but I'm still not too confident about cantering just yet.

" _Sir Emmett_!"

While we were talking, Michael had been trying to get Emmett's attention. Emmett gave the same startled reaction as earlier and apologised as Michael looked a bit frustrated.

"This horse is usually used for pulling carts for transporting things from the villages to the castle grounds however, because you _are_ big and most likely to be heavy, he is the best for you. Compared to our other draft breeds, he is the most well-behaved and docile," Michael was saying as Jasper and I were mounting on our horses.

Emmett seemed to be in awe of the big horse in front of him. Michael was right. Though the horse was really big in comparison to my Aston, it seemed to be suitable for someone of Emmett's bulk. Jasper was clearly already excited, trotting around on Ducati.

"What's his name?" Emmett wondered.

Michael blinked. "I don't believe he has one. We don't have a custom of naming our draft horses."

Emmett reached out and rubbed the stallion's nose. "That's a shame," he said softly.

"Would you like to mount him now?"

Assured that he was in good hands, I steered Aston to the paddock where Jasper was already galloping on Ducati. I stared at him in awe; there was _no way_ I could ever go that fast on Aston anytime soon.

I tightened my hold on the reins and gently pushed Aston into a trot. "C'mon, boy, slowly."

As I practiced what I learnt this past week, Jasper slowed down and came over. "Don't you want to try cantering now?"

I shook my head. "Maybe when I'm more confident in my working trot. I'm still nervous with road gaiting."

"Then practice. Go on, I'll coach you through."

As Jasper helped me ease Aston into a road gait and slowly to a working trot, I found myself relaxing. "I think I'm getting the hand of this."

"You have to be, considering this is all you've been practising in your equestrian classes all week," Jasper laughed.

Just then, soft padded steps came towards us and we see Michael leading Emmett on his horse into the paddock. Emmett looked incredibly uncomfortable albeit unafraid.

"You sure look better than I did on my first ride," I scowled.

Emmett laughed when Jasper told him about our outing and said, "Well, Eddie has always been a bit clumsy and non-athletic."

"I run faster than you do though," I pointed out.

" _Only_ running," Emmett joked.

I rolled my eyes and continued to practise with Jasper as Michael helped Emmett walk his horse and start on a jog trot.

For the rest of the afternoon, we rode around the paddock, had mini 'races' if you could call it a race without cantering since Emmett and I didn't know how to, and groomed the horses together.

"You know, Emmett, you can give your horse a name. He doesn't have one yet, so no one would oppose to it. Besides, the next time you come over to visit, it's highly likely that if we go riding again, this horse will be the one assigned to you. We can't keep calling him just ' _boy'_ and ' _horse'_ ," Jasper said as he wrapped a tail bandage around Ducati's dark tail.

Emmett paused mid-brush. "I can really name him? Then… _Grizzly_?"

"Why Grizzly?" I frowned as I brushed Aston's coat.

My friend looked sheepish. "You know how I like bears. And the grizzly bear is my favourite… so…"

"Well, as long as it's not _Rose_ ," Jasper piped.

Emmett pretended to throw his brush at him. "I'm not going to name the horse after my angel!"

I rolled my eyes and Jasper made a face. "Ew. What angel? We're _twins_ , does that make me your angel too?"

"I wouldn't want _you_ for my angel!"

I rolled my eyes. "Alright alright. Let's finish grooming the horses and get back. The girls are probably done by now too."

* * *

" _Woah_ , what is all this?" Emmett breathed.

"Indeed. It looks as though a cat just found its way into our sewing room and trashed everything," Jasper nodded.

Mother laughed. "I was thinking we'd sew something for you. It's Alice's first time doing crochet."

We looked to the little black haired girl who seemed to be wrestling with yarn that was strewn all over her as well as the rest of Mother's sitting room. Bella was kneeling beside her and gently telling her to be patient while coaxing her about 'loops' and stitches'.

"Here you go, Emmett. I made you a bear." Mother laid a palm-sized crochet bear in Emmett's hands.

"Aww, thanks, Esme," he murmured, peering at it.

"Alice is making you a Pegasus, Jasper. Though I did tell her it might be a very difficult animal to do for her first time but she's very determined. I'm sure it'll be done soon," Mother smiled.

Jasper looked surprised and turned to gaze at the small girl.

"I suppose _you_ had your fun, Mother?" I asked.

Mother patted my back. "I sure did. Almost felt like the time when I was teaching _you_ how to crochet."

" _You_ know how to _crochet_?!" Emmett and Jasper gaped at me.

"It was a useful skill," I said defensively.

"Edward." I turned around. Bella smiled at me shyly but held out a little red figure.

"It's a phoenix. Esme has better skills though, so you might not be able to tell," she quipped.

 _My crest_.

"Thank you," I smiled, taking it from her. It was small and cute and it had a key ring attached to it. "I'll take good care of it."

In the meanwhile, Alice finally gave up and gave Jasper his Pegasus.

"It only has one wing that looks like it was _tortured_ and his legs and his legs have different lengths so you don't have to take it – "

Jasper silenced her by accepting the mangled figure of yarn and bringing it to his lips. "Thank you. You spent a lot of effort making this for me, _of course_ I'd treasure it."

Alice's smile couldn't have been brighter.

* * *

"Make sure to write to us often okay!" Alice sniffed, hugging me tight.

The rest of the day had gone by quickly and after dinner, it was time for my friends to go home.

"Till next time, Eddie-boy! _Remember_ , I got great smuggling and hiding skills if you need it!" Emmett joked.

"Take care, both of you. Send my regards to both your parents and Emily," I said.

Jasper and Bella had come down with me to see them off as Mother, Carlisle and Rosalie bid their goodbyes after dinner. Alice had hugged Mother and Carlisle, to the King's surprise. Emmett allowed Mother to fuss over him a bit and shook hands with Carlisle but stammered a farewell to my stone sister.

Alice hugged Bella too. "Take good care of my brother!" As I turned red with horror, Bella simply promised and squeezed her back.

"Until next time," Jasper murmured, kissing Alice's hand. She smiled wistfully and got into the carriage.

"See ya, Jas! Make sure my boy doesn't turn into a real Ken doll! See ya, Bella. You're pretty cool too!" Emmett announced before climbing in after Alice and the carriage drove off.

"Turn into a _what_?" Jasper echoed, confused as I waved goodbye.

"Ignore him, he's always speaking nonsense," I said airily and Bella giggled, clearly knowing what a Ken doll was.

* * *

"So, what do you think of Edward's new family?" Alice asked quietly.

She was sitting in Emmett's room and Emily was with them, just after they told her about their day at the castle.

"I think they're all pretty nice," Emmett shrugged. "And there's an angel there too. Eddie will be alright."

" _Angel_?" Emily raised an eyebrow.

Alice sighed. "Your brother is smitten with the Kingdom's First Princess."

"You're kidding!" the other girl gasped.

"You should have seen her, she was _so_ beautiful," Emmett sighed.

"He gets like that every time we talk about her. Besides, it's not about her. I'm just a bit worried," Alice said quietly.

"Why?" Emily frowned. "From what you described, they all seemed really nice. No one's treating Edward badly and he's happy, right?"

"Yes but…"

" _But_?"

"I'm worried about his relationship with Bella," Alice admitted.

"Bella? The _nice_ princess? Why?"

"Yeah, Bella seems pretty cool," Emmett joined in, after Rosalie faded from his mind.

Alice bit her lip, "I just have a _weird_ feeling… Maybe it's nothing."

Emily looked slightly alarmed. "Your feelings have been a really strong intuition. You always had a knack for telling these kind of things. Do you think it's a sign?"

Emily did not know about Alice's gift but it was no secret to the town that the girl had good intuition and always seemed to know everything.

"I don't know," Alice moaned.

"Well, there's a first time for everything," Emmett grinned.

"Shut up, you."

"Oh, Em, did Allie-cat here tell you that _she_ fell in love too?" Emmett said mischievously.

Alice glared at him but his sister squealed.

" _You did?!"_

"And with the _Prince_ too," he continued, ignoring Alice's fierce look.

Emily clapped happily. "Tell me _all_ about him! I need to know the details!"

Alice sighed in defeat but smiled at the girl whom she considered her own sister. "Well… he was just _so_ handsome and…"

* * *

"I'm glad you saw your friends today. You certainly look really cheered up," Bella said casually.

We were slowly walking back to our rooms after seeing my friends off and Jasper had rushed off, claiming he had to see Carlisle about something.

"Yeah, I've known them for a long time and I used to see them almost every day so it was weird to go so long here without meeting them."

"How long have you known them?" Bella asked curiously.

"I met Emmett 13 years ago when he was five years old. He came to our bakery to choose his birthday cake. I met Alice much later, around… 4 years ago, after she moved here."

"I see… 13 years ago… Emmett was 5 years old? Oh! So he's a year younger than you?"

"That's right. They always joke at how I'm the _old_ man amongst them, that's why I'm so responsible," I chuckled.

Bella laughed. "That sounds nice. They're really good people. I'm glad I got to meet them."

We came to a fork that led to the different rooms.

"See you tomorrow, goodnight, Edward," she said softly.

"Goodnight," I murmured, watching her head down to her room before walking down the corridor towards mine.

 _She's so sweet… and beautiful…_

 _Oh no, Edward, stop!_

I found myself shaking my head hard, trying to stop my thoughts. I strode into my room, throwing myself onto the bed, feeling the day's happiness ebb away and misery sank in.

 _What is_ wrong _with me?_

* * *

 **SNEAK PEAK**

 _I had a really good first impression on Michael and he has been really knowledgeable and patient while teaching me during past equestrian classes. But right now, I'm getting really angry at him._

 _In fact, I'm_ furious _!_

* * *

A/N: Just so you know, most of my knowledge about horses and riding comes from the time when I was one of those little girls who was obsessed with ponies and I read a lot of books on them, fiction and non-fiction. I added what I remembered about them but I do not have any experience handling or riding them first-hand, neither do I know anyone who does so please do not take offense if there was anything I wrote that was wrong. Anyway, Id like to know your opinion because I'm horrible with names but do you think I should change the title of this story? Do offer suggestions if you think so!


	8. Of Conquests and Melodies

**DISCLAIMER** : This is a work of fiction created by myself, the original Twilight belongs to the author of Twilight Saga, the amazing Stephanie Meyer. If I owned it, I wouldn't be writing a fanfiction.

 **A/N:** This chapter has a bit of angst; please do not get offended by any of the characters. Remember that this is a work of fiction only! Do review :)

* * *

"Edward!"

I turned around to see Jasper striding towards me.

"Just finished royal studies class?" he asked.

"Yes, why?"

"I'm heading to the stables for a ride with Michael. Do you want to come along?"

"Sure!" I grinned.

Somehow, I realised just how much being around Aston made me relax. As silly as it seems, I felt that he understood my emotions because he always became more affectionate after lessons that made me frustrated with my inability to perform. He would nuzzle and blow into my face, which made me think he cared. I always felt better after equestrian classes when I could groom Aston's coat, brush his mane and tail and just talk to him softly about how I was doing. I always looked forward to that part of the day.

"Are you and Michael close? You address him casually though he still speaks formally to you," I asked, as we headed towards the stables.

Jasper gave a shrug. "I keep telling him that he doesn't need to but he still uses formalities because he thinks it's inappropriate. I've known him since I was a child. His father used to be the stable master before he retired and Michael was old enough to take his place. Back then, his father would take him along in order to get him used to the environment and eventually groom him for the job. So when I was 6 years old, Father brought me to the stables to watch one of our mares give birth. That's when I met him."

I stopped and stared him in shock. _"You watched a mare give birth when you were 6?!_ And Carlisle _allowed_ it?!"

Jasper chuckled at my horrified expression. "It wasn't that bad. I was really fascinated. Michael was introduced to me then and I remember him excitedly chattering to me while the process was going on."

I shuddered at the thought of two 6 year old kids chit-chatting happily in front of a horse in labour _. How disturbing!_ Jasper snickered again at my disgusted face. Then a sudden thought struck me.

"Wait, are you guys the same age? He looks older though."

"He is. Just by four years though. He was 10 at the time, but he didn't mind when I kept coming to the stables after that to look at the horses and he would answer all my curious questions about them. His dad noticed I was really interested in horses, especially in the one that was just born. So Carlisle gave him to me for my seventh birthday. I couldn't ride him until _years_ later, of course; he was still a foal. But I remembered being so happy when I got Ducati and Michael helped me learn what I needed to care for him properly."

I smiled. "I see. So he's a dear friend to you."

"Not really... We're only close when it comes to horses. We clash a lot all the time when it comes to other things because we have different opinions and we think _very_ differently. We have conflicting morals and values so we argue a lot too. And I don't approve of the way he treats women," Jasper continued, this time, a frown creased his forehead.

"The way he treats women?"

"He acts like they're conquests, like a game. He enjoys the chase but once the woman agrees to be with him, he drops them a few days later, claiming to have lost interest."

"That's horrible!" I exclaimed. Mother always taught me to treat women with care, firmly but not harshly if they were too persistent.

Jasper sighed. "Other than that, he's a good guy. But his womanizing ways make me scorn him at times."

Well, it sounded _despicable_ to treat anyone like that, I always detested people who stepped over others' feelings. But he seemed like a good friend to Jasper, so I kept quiet.

"Prince Jasper! Oh, and Prince Edward is here too!"

We turned to see the very man we were discussing come out from one of the stalls he was mucking. To my surprise, he had the biggest grin on his face that I haven't seen before; his smiles had always been very polite and formal during lessons. But this one looked genuine and rather smug. I wasn't sure if I liked this grin. Jasper seemed to be thinking the same because he said, "Hey, Mike! Hope you don't mind that Edward comes with us. What's wrong with your face? You look like a cat that ate the canary."

Michael's smile only grew wider. "Nothing, I'll go fetch the horses," he said.

While he was tacking them up, Jasper and I waited outside and I realised my brother looked uneasy.

"What's wrong?" I ventured.

He only sighed. "Sorry, Edward. It looks like I invited you to go riding with us on the wrong day."

"What do you mean?"

"Usually when Mike has that face, it means that he has either found a new target or just achieved his goal."

"You mean…"

"Like I said earlier, Mike has a hobby of chasing after girls, winning over their hearts then carelessly dumping them. That's the kind of face he makes when he secures his target or after the target falls in love with him. Believe it or not, his face becomes even more grossly happier _after_ he dumps them," Jasper muttered.

"So it's likely that today he has set his eyes on another unfortunate lady?" I asked hesitatingly.

My brother nodded grimly. "Or it could be she has finally fallen for him and given in to his charms."

The sound of footsteps and hooves came towards us and Jasper forced a grin onto his face as Michael came towards us with Ducati, Aston and an unfamiliar dapple-grey horse, which I assumed was Michael's.

"Are we heading for the glades or the meadow?" he asked as we mounted the horses.

"The glade will be easier for Edward; there's a trail that smoothens the ride compared to the rocky path to the meadow."

"Alright then. Come on, Topper," the stable master clicked his tongue.

As we rode, I kept in mind to keep my back straight and relax whilst holding the reins loosely but firmly, taking care not to pull at Aston's mouth.

"So… Who's the unlucky girl this time?" Jasper asked casually. I made sure to ride behind them, so as to try and not involve myself into the conversation.

"What do you mean?" Michael tried to sound nonchalant.

"Don't lie to me, I've known you for how long now? So who is it?"

Michael laughed. "Well… This morning, a very pretty beauty came to pay her mare a visit… I always thought she was pretty but today I realised just how much."

Jasper yanked on his reins, forcing Ducati to stop and since I was behind him, I quickly stopped Aston before we could crash into them.

" _MY SISTER?! BELLA?!"_ Jasper suddenly screeched.

 _What?!_

Michael turned around. "Well… yeah," he said, looking sheepish.

I had a really good first impression on Michael and he has been really knowledgeable and patient while teaching me during past equestrian classes. But right now, I'm getting really angry at him.

In fact, I'm _furious_! But I wasn't the only one.

"Listen here, _Newton_! You stay _away_ from Bella! She has _no_ interest in men like you!" Jasper said fiercely.

"You don't know that! If she happens to like me, you can't stop her!" Michael protested. "From her response to me this morning, it seemed that she quite liked me!"

Aston shook his head slightly when I clenched at his reins in anger. The very idea of Bella with this… _disgusting_ creature was enough to make me dizzy with wrath.

Jasper's face was completely red with fury. "Shut up. _Right now_. Bella does not deserve a _womaniser_ like you! She is the _princess_ of our Kingdom! Not some common woman you pick up from the side of the street to woo! I will not have it! You stay away from her. _Or else_ ," Jasper snarled.

"Let's go back, Edward," he said shortly, pushing Ducati into a canter back towards the castle. I followed suit, my vexation at Michael overriding my fear of cantering for the first time on uneven grounds outside of the paddock.

As we got back to the stables, Jasper dismounted and untacked Ducati, all the while muttering angrily under his breath. I was slightly relieved that Michael hadn't followed us back so I wouldn't need to see his stupid face.

A sudden thought struck me. "How did you know he was talking about _Bella_? It could've been Rosalie. You do have two sisters," I frowned.

Jasper sighed heavily as he helped me untack Aston seeing as he was done with Ducati. "Only Bella would come down to the stables to visit Twilight. The only time when Rosalie would see Lillian is if the mare was already in the paddock or if she wanted to go for a ride. Rosalie is fond of Lillian but doesn't like the stables; claims it's too _dirty_ for her fancy shoes. So it could only be Bella that would come down here to simply spend time with Twilight. She _loves_ that mare."

I could imagine Bella's sweet face, talking softly with Twilight in her stall and brushing her coat. It only made me even angrier at the thought of Michael seeing that scene and deciding to make her his new conquest.

As we walked back to the castle, Jasper suddenly burst out, "Aren't _you_ angry, Edward?! She's your _sister_ too!"

I felt myself freeze. Almost immediately, this overwhelming feeling of guilt and _shame_ washed over me. I was just as bad as Michael for having thoughts about my sister.

Jasper took my silence as a 'no'.

"I know we haven't been family for long. But I _truly_ view you as my brother now. I thought… you felt the same…" He sounded really disappointed now.

I hurried to reassure him. "No, no, it's not like that. I _am_ angry at Michael. I was so furious just now… but…"

" _But_?"

"I just… kind of thought that… well, Rosalie and Bella might not _want_ me to view them as my sisters… Your twin did look a bit irritated every time Carlisle addressed her as such," I said slowly.

It wasn't _completely_ a lie. A part of me was afraid of not being completely accepted by the family so I never really claimed them as mine but at the same time… I felt _guilty_ … for harbouring inappropriate thoughts and emotions for the youngest member… so I didn't call them family as some sense of atonement.

"Well, Rose is a bit… _slow_ to adapt to new situations so just ignore her, she'll get over it soon enough. But I assure you Bella sees you and Esme as part of our family already." _Why did I feel a little hurt at that?_

"I was silly to worry about that, wasn't I?"

"Yeah, you were. But it's okay. So now you know, you have every right to punch Newton in the face if he ever talks about Bella or even look in her direction," Jasper continued.

I assume Newton is Michael's surname. "But… can he really try to win Bella's heart? Isn't there some kind of law against harassment?"

"There _is_ , of course. But as long as Newton is being civil and polite and sweet to Bella like to all his previous conquests before her, the law can't be applied to him because it will be seen as courting."

My eyes widened. " _Courting_?! Like for _marriage_?!" I felt nauseous at the thought if Bella walking down the aisle to the likes of someone like Michael Newton.

Jasper growled. "Not if I can help it. I'm going to go see Father now and tell him about today."

"Will he dismiss Michael from his post?" I asked, half-hoping for a yes."

But my brother shook his head. "I highly doubt it. Newton hasn't committed a crime or done anything that would deem that action therefore the others may view Father as unjust if he does dismiss him. However, he can post more guards to keep watch over the stables so that if Bella comes to visit, Newton can't do anything to her. And he can talk to Bella about being more cautious around him. If I were to talk to her, she'd just brush me off; she thinks I'm too protective, but she takes Father more seriously."

"Alright. Then I'll see you at dinner later," I said and watch Jasper jog off.

It seemed that trouble was only beginning to brew.

* * *

"Prince Edward, I sincerely apologise for not being able to inform you earlier. Your dance class has been cancelled. Sir Varner has broken his leg," Ben told me.

"Is he alright?" I asked, alarmed. Mr Varner was not my favourite professor as he was a bit too passionate over such a trivial thing as dance but he was a good person and I knew he was an excellent father and husband as he often talked to me about his wife and son during lessons.

"Yes, Your Highness, we have seen to it that he is being treated in the nearest hospital and his medical expenses are covered. He should have a smooth recovery."

I sighed in relief. "That's great to hear."

"In the meanwhile, your dance classes will be on hold. Would you like to send him anything?" Ben asked.

I looked at him in confusion before remembering that in Social Etiquette class, I had learnt that the Royal Family often sent fruit baskets or flower bouquets to our subjects or in extreme cases, personally pay them a visit. I suppose that since he is my teacher, I ought to send him something.

"Yes, please. Perhaps a fruit basket and a toy," I murmured.

Ben blinked. "A… _toy_ , Your Highness?"

"He has a son, so I just thought it would be appropriate to send him a toy. Is that not advisable?" I wondered, hoping I hadn't said anything too bizarre.

Ben shook his head and smiled. "I think it ought to be fine, Sir."

I suddenly remembered a wooden toy car I had brought with me from my old home. I got it as a present from Aunt Rebecca when I was a child but I had never played with it. It now stood on my shelf in my room.

"Wait here," I told Ben and started to run towards my room.

Bursting in, I headed to my study table, spotting the toy immediately. I took it and checked its condition, ensuring there was no scratches or peeling of the paint. It would be insulting to send him a worn-out toy after all.

"Sir?" I turned to see Ben, who had followed me.

"Here. Can you give this to his son for me?" I asked, holding out the car.

Ben looked horrified. " _I couldn't!_ Does it not belong to you, You Highness? We can get him a new one."

"Oh, sorry. I suppose that it would do no good to give him a hand-me-down. I just thought he'd like to play with it," I said quickly. I mentally berated myself for being insensitive.

"Oh no, Your Highness! That wasn't what I meant. I only believed that if it was something you treasured, you needn't give it away. We could have bought him something else. But if Your Highness has such kind thoughts, I'll pass it _personally_ to him on your behalf," Ben said, carefully taking the toy car from me.

I grinned. "Thank you, Ben! I didn't play with it at all when I was a child so I thought it would be happier in a new home."

"I'm sure he'll be delighted with his present, Sir. I shall prepare the fruits basket and leave for the hospital tomorrow morning."

"Thank you, Ben. I'm sorry you have to do this for me. Would you like me to come with you?" I asked, wondering if this was a bit too much for him to do by himself.

"I'll be alright, Sir. Rest assured, Mr Varner will receive your sentiments and his son your toy."

As Ben headed off, I went back to the room where I had been waiting for Mr Varner. The music room.

It had been quite a while since I touched the piano. I always _longed_ to play the one in the music room but never had the chance. I sat on the bench and lifted the lid. The piano was truly magnificent; the only one I had played on belonged to the village's library and it was an old upright.

I was almost _afraid_ to touch the keys on the grand piano. But as I gingerly tested the keys, the notes sounded like honey to my ears. Almost naturally, a melody came to me and I began to play. My thoughts whirled around Mother and Carlisle, my first meeting with Carlisle and how he had looked at her.

As my fingers slowed and came to a stop, I sighed contentedly. _I had missed this_.

"That was really beautiful," said a soft voice.

I jumped and turned red when Bella came in to sit beside me.

"It didn't sound familiar. Did you compose it?" she asked curiously.

"W-well, not really. It just came to me now, while I was playing," I breathed, trying to keep my mind from going into overdrive from having Bella sitting so closely beside me.

She looked so in awe that I wanted to just melt when I realised that this gaze was for _me_.

"Wow," she whispered. "You have such talent! That was amazing! It felt so gentle and loving."

"I thought of Mother and Carlisle while I was playing. The melody just fell into place by themselves," I explained.

She smiled at me. "After dinner, you have to play for them! Father would be _delighted_ to hear it. And I'm sure Esme would cry if you played this for her."

I laughed. "That's likely. I shouldn't play for her if it will make her cry."

"No, I will _insist_ that they hear it. You have a beautiful gift. Don't you think that it would be wonderful to share it and make them happy?" she said kindly.

I blinked. I never thought of it that way. I always saw it as bragging, I didn't think of it as a way to make Mother and even my new family happy.

"Thank you, Bella. You're right. Maybe I will play for them," I said, more confident this time.

* * *

"Edward," Mother whispered and as expected, she was crying into her handkerchief.

I felt so warm and happy inside when I saw the kind and touched expression on Carlisle's face and though I couldn't see Mother's as she had it covered with her handkerchief, I knew she, too, was overjoyed. And _I_ was the one who made them feel this way.

As Bella had said, the first topic she had brought up during dinner was my song on the piano. Everyone had eagerly agreed to go albeit Carlisle had to encourage Rosalie and she caved, looking slightly annoyed.

Now Bella and Jasper beamed at me, and even _Rosalie_ managed to give a small smile.

Mother pulled me into a tight hug. "Thank you, son. That was so _beautiful_."

Carlisle smiled at me over her shoulder and reached out to pat my head gently. "Indeed. Thank you. I'm so moved that that beautiful melody was just for us."

"I didn't know you played the piano. You should have said something if you're that good!" Jasper exclaimed.

"Exactly. Talent should be developed," Rosalie said. Her tone was still cold but that was the closest to a compliment I've ever heard her say to me. Jasper winked at me as though to reassure me.

Mother kissed my forehead. "I love you."

I felt slightly embarrassed but replied, "I love you too, Mother. I'm glad you and Carlisle like it."

"We _love_ it," Carlisle said firmly, squeezing my shoulder.

"Told you so," Bella giggled.

As I looked around at my family, smiling at me, I felt, for the first time, that everything was right.

* * *

 **SNEAK PEEK**

 _"Hey, Edward…"_

 _"What's wrong?"_

 _"I was just wondering, you know… Don't take offense if I'm wrong."_

 _"I won't."_

 _"Well… Do you…_ like _… Bella… by any chance?"_

* * *

A/N: Uh oh, who found out Edward's little crush?


	9. Jurisdiction

**DISCLAIMER** : This is a work of fiction created by myself; the original Twilight belongs to the author of Twilight Saga, the amazing Stephanie Meyer. If I owned it, I wouldn't be writing a fanfiction.

 **A/N:** Sorry for the really late update. My internship has been keeping me so tired that I haven't had the time. I will try to upload a new chapter once a week or once every two weeks from now on, but I will have to manage my time well. I hope you guys like this chapter, do leave a review as some motivation for me!

* * *

"Soooo… How _did_ Bella know you could play the piano?" Jasper asked casually as we headed back to our rooms.

"I feel almost hurt she knew before I did. And here I thought that I'm the closest person to you, aside from Esme, of course," he continued jokingly.

"No, I didn't tell her. She overheard me playing," I protested.

My brother laughed. "And I'm glad. I have a feeling that you wouldn't have said it yourself otherwise."

"Maybe," I mumbled. "Oh, and what did Carlisle say when you told him about Michael?" I asked, suddenly remembering today's trouble.

Jasper's smile faded. "Well, he was on good terms with Newton's father, the previous stable master, so he can't dismiss or warn Newton if he hasn't posed any threats yet. But I do believe that Father is intending on passing Bella a pepper spray or some kind of weapon so she can protect herself."

"Is that _allowed_?"

"Sure, for self-defence purposes. Rose has a pepper spray in her purse every time she heads out."

"Oh, I see…"

We continued walking in amiable silence when Jasper suddenly turned to me, his expression serious.

"Hey, Edward…"

"What's wrong?" I felt almost afraid that he looked so grim.

"I was just wondering, you know… Don't take offense if I'm wrong."

"I won't," I promised.

"Well… Do you… _like_ … Bella… by any chance?"

I froze. The panic inside me seemed to almost swell and I felt myself begin to hyperventilate.

Jasper immediately grabbed my shoulders and shook me hard. " _Edward_?!"

I braced myself. There was no doubt about it. Jasper was going to beat me up right here, then report to Carlisle about this. He was going to be so _disgusted_ that the son he took in was inappropriately thinking of his daughter. Mother was going to be so heartbroken that I was causing trouble in her new marriage and disown me!

My wild imaginations came to an abrupt halt when Jasper yelled, "Edward, it's okay!"

… _Okay?_

I forced myself to calm down and felt a really warm feeling wash over me. It seemed to come from my shoulders but it was a safe and healing sensation. I felt my breathing ease and vision focus. Then I realised that I had sunk down to my knees. Jasper was kneeling in front of me and had his hands on my shoulders. He looked incredibly worried. Hopefully, that meant he still considered me a family member.

"Edward," he began slowly. "I'm sorry I surprised you. I just… I noticed how you looked at Bella just now, after you played for us."

"How… I _looked_ at her…?" Did my facial expression give my feelings away? Mother always said that even though I was able to read others well, I had a habit of showing my own feelings by my expression or body language. But Jasper's next words startled me.

"You look at her just like Father looks at Esme."

 _… Like Carlisle looks at Mother…_

That loving, gentle gaze he always gave to Mother… I had that same expression… for _Bella_?

"You… didn't realise?" Jasper asked quietly.

I couldn't bring myself to look at him. "Umm, I… I'm really sorry, Jasper. I truly, _truly_ didn't mean to…"

Jasper smacked my shoulder. "Idiot! I'm kind of happy about it, you know."

My head snapped up and I gaped at him. " _What_?!" My brother was grinning nervously at me.

"Listen. Do you honestly think I would have been angry at you?"

I hesitated. "Well… yeah. I came to be a part of your family… and here I am… having all sorts of inappropriate thoughts…"

"Inappropriate thoughts?" Jasper echoed, eyes narrowing.

 _He has the right to be angry at me_ , I told myself firmly.

"… I keep thinking… about how beautiful she is… How kind she is. Bella has this way of just making me feel like I want to _smile_ … I-I realise that shouldn't be thinking this way; I've tried to stop it but I can't help it at times," I tried to explain.

Jasper stared at me for a moment before bursting into loud guffaws. _This is a highly unexpected reaction_.

"J-Jasper?" I said uneasily.

"S-sorry," he gasped, wiping his tears. "I just didn't expect you to say that. You know, there is nothing _inappropriate_ about your thoughts. If you have someone you love, thinking like that becomes inevitable. Compared to the kind of thought Newton would be having, yours are much purer!"

I growled and Jasper grinned.

"I was happy when I realised what you felt for Bella. I said it earlier, didn't I? That you've become a brother to me. Right now, you're the closest person to me and nothing would make me happier if you and Bella got together. You're a worthy man for my sister."

I felt a slow smile spread across my face but it quickly disappeared. "You're talking as if we're a couple already. She doesn't feel the same way. Besides, we're supposed to be siblings now and – "

"Stop _right_ there," Jasper demanded. "First, you don't know she doesn't feel the same way. She _is_ fond of you, even _I_ can see that. You definitely have a higher chance than dumb Newton does. Second, even if we're supposed to be siblings, we're not related by blood so technically, it's not illegal for you and Bella to be together. So don't look so glum!"

"Jasper… b-but didn't you say that Bella wasn't interested in men?"

My brother rolled his eyes. "She isn't, not usually. But she hasn't met many men either; both Carlisle and I make sure of that."

 _Ah, that explains it._

"Anyway, you have my approval and encouragement!" Jasper grinned. "Do your best to win her heart! Bella is a romantic at heart though she doesn't like it when we spend a lot of money on her so you can do all the _sappy_ things instead like, you know, handmade teddy bears or scarfs, those corny love letters and such…"

I blinked. "I don't think I'll do any of that; I'm not really one for the sappy – wait a minute, you're pretty knowledgeable about this, aren't you?"

A mischievous look crossed his face and he felt around his jacket pockets before pulling out a baby pink envelope and holding it up in front of me. "I'm doing my own sappy things after all," he chuckled.

I frowned before realising the words on the envelope looked extremely familiar. "Hey… Isn't that… _Alice's_ handwriting?"

Jasper smirked. "As expected of Edward! You recognised it immediately! Your sneaky little friend slipped her address into my pocket when we were saying goodbye and we've been writing to each other since then."

"You… like Alice?" I asked slowly.

"You're okay with it, right? I'm still getting to know her right now but… I feel I may be falling pretty hard," he laughed bashfully.

I started to smile. In a way, we were two men in the same boat; dealing with first stages of love.

"Treat her well. She's a rare gem," I advised.

"I will. All the best with my sister to you too. Oh, and speaking of which, tomorrow, the _perfect_ time to go and see her would be..."

* * *

"Oh! Edward! You don't have classes now?"

I stood up and pretended to look surprised as Bella made her way through the garden towards me. "Oh, no, my dance class is currently on hold so I have some extra free time now. Thought I'd take a look in the gardens, Mother mentioned a few days ago that there's some special flowers currently in bloom."

Technically, it was _Jasper_ who told me.

"You mean the Marie flowers? Have you seen them yet? They're exceptionally beautiful this year," she smiled.

"No," I told her honestly. "I don't know where they're planted in the garden so I thought I'd ask Benjamin or Mother later."

My eyes widened when Bella reached out to take my hand. "Come on, I'll show you. They're right this way." She started to pull me along the stone paths but my mind was completely blank and I couldn't take my eyes off our connected hands.

We came to a stop in front of one of the ponds, where these beautiful flowers were planted surrounding the pond. They were white with a slight blue tinge and it gave the pond a soft glowing effect. I knew nothing about plants but these were definitely one of the most beautiful flowers in the royal gardens.

"Beautiful, aren't they?" Bella grinned, catching my stare. She dropped my hand and I felt slightly disappointed but tried not to let it show.

" _Very_. I've never seen them before."

"They only grow in our Kingdom. My grandmother was the one who first discovered them. Grandfather named them after her and grew them on the palace grounds," she told me, a gentle smile on her face.

"King Roland did?"

Bella nodded. "They were Mother's favourite flowers. She always came to see them when she was feeling down."

"Your mother..?" The previous Queen. Queen Elizabeth.

"Yes." Bella didn't say anymore and I fidgeted a bit, struggling to come up with something to say.

"What was she like?" I finally asked before immediately realising that this could be a sore subject for her. "Umm, if you don't mind telling me…"

The brunette giggled a little. "No, it's okay. I barely remember her; I was still a baby after all. But Jazz and Rose used to tell me about her and how kind she was. Father often told me I took after her."

I was now picturing a lady who looked like future Bella but was more poised and sophisticated with a gentle aura. I remembered Benjamin telling me once that there was a room somewhere in the castle dedicated to the late Queen. I ought to pay my respects one of these days.

"Oh, speaking of Father, he has something important to tell you after dinner today," Bella said.

"Important?"

"I'm not quite sure what it is but I'm required to be there too, so don't worry too much about it," she smiled.

 _Even though she was smiling so sweetly at me, how can I_ not _worry? What if Carlisle had found out about my feelings for her and planned to confront me later in her presence?!_

"Edward. You're panicking," Bella giggled.

"S-sorry."

"Does Father scare you?"

"Well, no, not really." _Yes_.

The girl laughed. "It's probably nothing. You'll see."

I certainly hope so.

* * *

"Edward, see me later in the throne room," Carlisle called just as we were dismissed from dinner.

I gulped but nodded. I could see Jasper chuckling at my expression from the corner of my eye. As I headed to my room, my brother jogged up to me. "Hey, bro. Don't look so frightened. Father usually summons us to the throne room for official royal business," he told me.

"What if he knows my feelings for Bella? That's serious enough to be summoned. And Bella told me this morning that she has to be there too," I said worriedly.

Jasper rolled his eyes. "Father's not _that_ perceptive, trust me. So go put on something more formal and see him. I'm sure it'll be fine."

I dressed in one of the formal suits and settled the crown on my head. After wearing so often, I still couldn't get used to the weight of it on my head and the feeling of cold metal (or whatever it was made of) touching my scalp. I headed to the throne room, feeling extremely anxious and worried.

"I present, Prince Edward!"

Slightly startled by the loud exclamation from the nearby guard as I entered the room, I could see Mother, Carlisle and Bella were already present.

"I apologise for being late," I called as I joined them.

"You're just on time," Mother smiled.

"Edward. You must be curious as to why I called you," Carlisle said warmly.

I swallowed. "Yes."

"Here in our Kingdom, as you already know, it is divided into the five regions of North, South, Central, East and West. Our castle in located right in the central area and your village being the closest to us."

I nodded along, wondering where he was getting at.

"In the Royal Family, we practise the division of territory where parts of lands are entrusted to members to take responsibility of. I myself have the jurisdiction of your village and the others in the central area of our Kingdom. Naturally mine is the largest as I have bigger responsibilities.

"The North contains 6 villages and a dense forest where the villages practise farming and commercial agriculture. It is also under my rule because we believed it was more important for me to monitor how much the trees are being cut down to avoid excess damage to the lands and decrease in animal habitats.

"The South was recently entrusted to Esme as she is Queen. She will be caring for all 8 villages in the area. The South villages are mainly work in commercial fishing for a living as they have abundant water sources in the area but many healers originate from there as well.

"The East consist of 6 villages and Rosalie and Jasper divide their duties to care for the people there together. The East are well-known for their strength and are densely populated by strong warriors who are faithful to the martial arts. Even the women there are strong and able to fight. Many of our men from the Royal Army came from the East which was why Jasper's influence there is indeed reassuring for them.

"Finally, the West is currently under Isabella's jurisdiction but I helped to shoulder some of her responsibilities as there are 5 villages there. The West specialise in invention. It's a broad specialisation but their people have always had creative ways to solve problems and they were the ones who invented our water supply system, our carriages and many others. They recently had a sudden increase in their birth numbers so their area is filled with children."

My head was starting to feel a bit dizzy from all the nodding I was doing to indicate that I was listening.

"Well, since now you have joined our family, I thought it was time that we assign you _your_ area of jurisdiction. Do you mind helping Isabella care for the West area? I have such large lands to care for that I haven't been able to help her lately. They've also been having some problems with productivity due to the many children causing chaos and mischief everywhere so Bella has been handling them herself."

"Um, no, of course I don't mind. I'd be happy to help," I said quickly.

Carlisle beamed. "That's great! Pack warm tonight, tomorrow you'll be heading to the West with Bella."

 _What?!_

I turned to Bella who smiled at me. "I look forward to working with you, Edward."

* * *

 **SNEAK PEEK**

"Who knew such small creatures could cause so much trouble!" I groaned.

Bella giggled. "I think they're cute!"

* * *

If you like this chapter, do drop my a review; it gives me so much encouragement! And thank you to those who have, they make me so happy! I hope you like this chapter too! I will try to get the next chapter up by next weekend, so around the first week of April. My internship ends in late August so do be patient with me if updates slow in between this time frame


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